


if it's not too weird

by elliewritesthings



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Daddy Kink, Dirty Talk, Fluff and Smut, Humor, M/M, Pining, Praise Kink, Teacher-Student Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-30
Updated: 2015-01-23
Packaged: 2018-03-04 09:34:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 27,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3062861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elliewritesthings/pseuds/elliewritesthings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oh well, he thinks as he stares at Cat’s twitching ears. It’s not the first time breaking rules for him, though it might as well be because it feels like ages he’s done something stupid. Maybe hanging out with those boring academics has already dulled him down. Why not seize the day and spend a few moments sneaking in this ferocious hellbeast? The damn thing will be Eren’s and his entire dorm’s problem the second it’s gotten through the window. So, in essence, fuck the police.</p><p>Cat seems to agree as he digs his claws into Levi’s wrist and lets out a delighted meow. You fucking furry little shithead, Levi’s about to hiss out but he bites his tongue when he sees Eren appear at the window</p><p>(an au where levi helps eren sneak his cat into his dorm and somehow gains joint custody of it and has the biggest crush ever)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

If you’d asked Levi about the accident afterwards, he’d have insisted that he had nothing to do with it. Yes, he’d been behind the wheel as his car had skidded into the ditch, but that’s as far as his involvement in the whole ordeal extended. The city roads are notorious for being poorly maintained in the winter, and it’s certainly not his fault that the puddles from yesterday had frozen overnight, forming a completely unavoidable and unnoticeable layer of black ice on the surface of the road.  
  
Besides, pointing fingers doesn’t change the fact that his car is totaled. It does start up, but the noises coming from under the crumpled hood suggest that his beautiful Mercedes-Benz is going to need a long vacation at the shop. Fan-fucking-tastic, just what he needed among all the papers to grade and midterms to plan, not to even mention the preparations for the meaningless and garish yearly festival of torture otherwise known as Christmas.  
  
The mechanic at the shop has the audacity to tell him to rent a car while his is being fixed, and, in the same breath, says that it may take up to two weeks. “Loads of Sunday drivers veering off the roads this time of the year,” she adds. Though Levi can’t see her face from where she’s working under the hood, he thinks he hears a trace of mockery in her voice. “It’ll take a week by the very least. We’ll try to get your car fixed in time for the holidays.”  
  
Please don’t, he’s tempted to say, because no car would mean no three-hour drive up north for the obligatory Christmas party his dad insists on hosting every year. Levi can put up with his family in small dozes and preferably from a distance, but seeing them all at once under tacky plastic decorations and twinkling lights that never fail to give him a headache is a bit too much. He and his siblings have made a game out of gradually spiking the punch and trying not to get caught – for the last four Christmases, the blame for the unusually stiff punch has fallen on either their dad or grandma June, even though their dad has been completely sober for almost a decade and grandma June carries around a flask of her own that’s filled with something even stiffer and hisses at anyone who tries to ask for a sip. That’s all you need to know about the Ackermans’ Christmas parties, really. The main attractions are either eating everything in sight, getting drunk, or doing both in moderation and watching as others make asses out of themselves.  
  
However, the more pressing concern in this situation is how he’ll get to work while his car is unavailable. Carpooling with the other professors from his department could be a valid option if it weren’t for the awkward chit-chat about the weather and current events he’d have to endure while being stuck in a dingy metal can with a bunch of dusty middle-aged academics. For goodness’ sake, their dullness could rub off on him and cost him his title of most popular professor on campus.  
  
In the end, he chooses what is perhaps the most unlikely option for someone like him – public transport.  
  
It’s common knowledge that he does not like people in his personal space breathing and coughing and spreading their germs around, but he’s left with no choice. Bus 4A goes right past his house and to the campus, so every morning Levi crams himself in there among what must surely be at least fifty other people who are going the same way.  
  
As he stands there, pressed right up against people, he vows to never complain about his car again, because if this is the alternative, he’d rather drive to work with a potato for the rest of his life.  
  
On some mornings, he cuts himself while shaving or burns his toast or spills coffee on his shirt, and then consequently misses his bus. Previously one tiny screw-up did nothing to his morning routine, but now a single mistake is all it requires to fuck up his entire schedule. Coupled with his love of the snooze button, it all adds up to a really fucking awful time.  
  
The bus stop Levi gets off at is quite a distance away from the building his office is located in, so on the mornings he’s running late, he cuts across the library square and carries along by the road that passes by a few dorms and apartment buildings.  
  
On one such morning, he comes across a cat sitting on the snowy sidewalk. It’s surprising enough to make him do a second take and slow down to a full stop.  
  
Though Levi’s standing only a few paces away, the cat shows no signs of being startled, keen blue eyes staring at him inquisitively from a face full of coarse black fur. It’s just a puffy ball of black fur, really, apart from the pink nose that’s currently sniffing at Levi’s shoelaces. The ice and the snow don’t seem to bother it as it sits there like it owns the entire road.  
  
Levi considers calling out to it, but someone else does so before he has the chance to open his mouth.  
  
“Cat! Come over here,” a gentle voice coos from somewhere behind him. Levi turns around to see a young man crouched on the sidewalk, hands held out and his mouth set in a wide grin. The cat gives a tiny meow as it pads towards his outstretched hands.  
  
“You shouldn’t keep your cat outside in this weather,” Levi points out. Then again, what does he know about raising pets, having never owned one himself?  
  
The young man looks up at him, alert jade eyes nailing him down where he stands. “Oh, he’s not really mine, I found Cat on the streets.” The way he says it sounds like Cat needs a capital letter. “Listen, can you…”  
  
“Wait, did you name your cat Cat?” Levi interrupts him with his brows furrowed, and after receiving a short nod in response, continues, “That’s kinda dumb.”  
  
The man shrugs, as if to say, _yeah I know, but it’s my cat now and I’ll name it what I want._ Cat is nibbling at his fingers, unaware that his new owner has bestowed him with a name that’s meta as fuck. “I need help getting him into my dorm, can you please give me a hand?” he asks, expression so stupidly hopeful that Levi wants to kick himself in the face when he looks at those full lips that are twisting into a frown. “It’ll only take a couple of minutes, okay? I promise you won’t be late because of this.”  
  
“I’m already late,” Levi sighs and watches the man’s face fall. This is the part where Levi walks away, perhaps amused by this guy’s plight for a second or two, but soon enough he’ll forget about the cat named Cat and the pretty young thing with the most captivating green eyes he’s ever seen. That’s what’ll happen, Levi tells himself, but when he glances at the fluffy black devil and his owner (that face should be illegal), something entirely different comes out of his mouth.  
  
“Okay,” he says. The guy’s face breaks into a grateful smile that makes goddamn harps and doves start playing inside Levi’s head, and they almost drown out the part of his mind that’s loudly screaming _‘what the fuck’_. “What, uh, what are you trying to do with the cat?”  
  
If he picks up on Levi’s momentary bewilderment, he at least has the decency not to question it. “So, here’s the plan.” He points to one of the windows of the building they’re standing in front of. “That’s my room. I’m going to go up there and throw down a rope with a basket tied to the end of it, and you’re going to put Cat into the basket.” Pausing for a moment, he turns his gorgeous eyes back to Levi. “Uh, I’m Eren, by the way. Thanks a million, dude. You’re the first one to stick around for this long.” There’s a sort of bashful expression lingering on his features, and suddenly all Levi can think of is what his face might look like if he kissed him.  
  
It takes a considerable amount of effort to remember what they were discussing just moments ago. “Have you been asking for long?” he eventually says after he’s regained some of his composure.  
  
Eren gives a dry laugh. “Yeah. It’s kind of complicated, but yeah.” In that instant, Levi decides that his Renaissance literature class can wait a few minutes – it’s Monday morning, half of them aren’t even probably out of bed yet.  
  
“Do tell. I have time,” he replies with raised brows and stares at Eren’s ear intently because otherwise he worries he’d get too distracted by his lips as he explains.  
  
“Well, originally I found him about a week ago,” Eren begins, scratching behind Cat’s ears. “My RA found out about him and wouldn’t let me keep him. But just now we got a new RA so I’m going to get him in again.” With a sideways glance and a mock whisper, he finishes off, “I’m pretty sure someone in my dorm ratted out on me before so I’m not taking any chances.”  
  
“You found him? As in, he was just wandering around and you took him in?” Levi questions, his voice incredulous.  
  
Eren gives Cat’s nose a tap and gets a hoarse meow in response. “Just look at him. I couldn’t leave him outside to fend for himself. It’s Christmas soon.” Cat sinks his teeth into Eren’s thumb but Eren doesn’t even flinch. “No-one should be alone on Christmas.”  
  
Though Levi likes to keep his distance from the natural habitats of the strange life forms known as students, he does know one thing: their college’s dorms are strict no-pets environments. A few years back, an RA had a forced a girl to flush her goldfish down the toilet because keeping one had been ‘in direct violation of their policy’.  
  
As a professor, the right thing to do in this situation would be to inform beautiful Eren’s new RA of his attempts and _then_ move on and forget, but as Eren’s already handing the cat over to him, Levi supposes he’s in too deep by now.  
  
“Just stay here and hold him for a bit, he has the tendency to wander off sometimes,” Eren rattles on before he’s rushing towards the entrance on the other side of the building. He hesitates a bit before turning the corner and casts one last glance at Levi. “Thank you so much. It won’t take long, I swear.” Then he’s gone and Levi’s left standing there with the cat nibbling at his fingers with his pointy little teeth.  
  
_Oh well_ , he thinks as he stares at Cat’s twitching ears. It’s not the first time breaking rules for him, though it might as well be because it feels like ages he’s done something stupid. Maybe hanging out with those boring academics has already dulled him down. Why not seize the day spend a few moments sneaking in this ferocious hellbeast? The damn thing will be Eren’s and his entire dorm’s problem the second it’s gotten through the window. So, in essence, fuck the police.  
  
Cat seems to agree as he digs his claws into Levi’s wrist and lets out a delighted meow. _You fucking furry little shithead_ , Levi’s about to hiss out but he bites his tongue when he sees Eren appear at the window.  
  
“Great!” he hollers after he’s opened it wide. “I’ll lower the basket now so get ready.” Levi thinks he’s as ready as he’ll ever be, but there’s nothing that would have prepared him for the sight of Eren inching out an empty cooler that’s precariously teetering by its handle at the end of what looks like a lengthy electrical cord.  
  
“This isn’t a basket,” Levi states, glancing at it in disbelief. “This is the least basket-like thing I have ever seen.” Truthfully, he’d expected an old-fashioned wicker basket, but then again, perhaps that would have been a bit too romantic, much like all the strange mental images of serenading Eren while he swoons by the window, completely enthralled by Levi’s rugged charm.  
  
Instead of that, all he gets is a new set of claw marks across his knuckles and the bottom of a cheap plastic cooler descending upon him. As if to mock him, it swings just above Levi’s head and Eren’s cautious voice calls out from above, “Uh this is as far as he cord will go.”  
  
When Levi looks up, he find Eren hanging halfway out the window as he holds on, and though Levi might just be imagining it, he thinks he catches Eren’s eyeing all 160 centimeters of him like the issue of his height hadn’t even occurred to him until now.  
  
Not for the first time in his life, possibly not even for the first time during the week, Levi seriously considers high heels. For now, standing up on his toes will have to do. Cat tries to cling on to his fingers as he sets him down, and Levi could swear he hears Eren coo, but when he looks up again, Eren’s quick to wipe the dumb smile off his face.  
  
“Yes! Great job,” he says, eyes narrowing in concentration. “I’m going to pull him up now, so just keep an eye on him and let me know if he’s too scared to continue.”  
  
Cat, being a cat, only appears mildly curious and perhaps a bit hungry as the cooler ascends in slow jerks. Levi watches him closely nonetheless, and when Eren pulls a bit too hastily and makes the cooler clatter against the hard stone wall, Levi prepares himself to leap forward if Cat should tumble out. All he hears is a peeved meow as a single paw reaches out in protest of the shaky state of his current dwelling.  
  
“Is he okay in there?” Eren questions, and the hint of concern in his voice should _not_ make Levi want to hold him against his chest and stroke his hair as if he’s the kitten here. He must have gotten lost in that thought for too long because the next thing he knows is Eren calling out, “Hey, everything going good?”  
  
_Going **well**_ **,** Levi corrects in his head _. C-. Come see me after class for extra credit. Wink wink, nudge nudge ._ “Yeah, he’s hanging on,” he replies, observing as the cooler rises higher and higher. Cat’s head is peeking out now and for a moment Levi thinks he might jump off, but then he’s already at the window and Eren’s reaching out with one hand to pull him to safety while babbling nonsense to him.  
  
Never in his life has Levi been jealous to a cat, and in order to keep it that way, he averts his eyes from the window. “You’re welcome!” he calls out over his shoulder, remembering that it’s eight am and he has places to go and students to torment. “Don’t get caught this time.”  
  
“I won’t! Thank you again,” he hears Eren yell in a cheery voice. He goes on to say something else, but the words are caught by the wind and blended in with the noise of the traffic and gravel crunching under Levi’s shoes, so Levi responds with a half-hearted wave of his hand as he hurries on his way.  
  
The image of piercing green eyes burns into his mind and follows him all the way to class. It isn’t until lunch that the memory of the strange yet beautiful young man and his cat fades – Levi eats a really delicious sandwich for lunch that effectively wipes his brain of all other thoughts, and even after that, something else will come, and after that, other things.  
  
Life goes on, as it usually does. In a few days, the only things on Levi’s mind are all the midterm exams he’s going to have to draw up and supervise and then grade over the Christmas break. He’s taken on a few more courses to teach for this semester which may have been a bit of a mistake, especially now since it takes him nearly an hour each day just to get to work and back.  
  
He just needs to get through next week, that’s what he keeps telling himself. Just next week and then it’s Christmas, when he’ll have at least a couple of days to do nothing but lay around all day.  
  
To keep himself going, he’s gotten in the habit of getting at least four cups of coffee a day – first one after he rolls out of bed, second after his morning class, third after lunch and fourth in the afternoon. The campus coffee shop is always full of students, but since Levi takes his to go, he doesn’t have to spend too much time in there. Afterwards he walks back to his office through the park that’s mostly empty during the winter, the water in the fountain frozen over and the grass covered in a thick layer of powdery snow.  
  
It’s a rare day for Levi since he only has to teach one class, but he figures that a little walk will do him good, anyway. The piping hot coffee keeps away at least some of the winter chill as he trudges along the trail, for once not in a hurry anywhere. After he’s downed it all, he tosses the cup into a nearby trashcan, ready to carry on his way until a lone figure slouched over by the next set of benches catches his attention.  
  
Since he was going in that direction anyway, he takes a few seconds to size up the person who’s sitting out in the cold. He’s dressed warmly enough, so it’s not that which is making Levi so interested. Now that Levi’s closer, he can get a peek of the face partially hidden under the scarf and hat, taken back at how familiar those features look.  
  
In an instant, Levi remembers everything – the cat, the cooler, and the brilliant green eyes staring to his very soul.  
  
It’s pretty Eren, sitting there on the bench with his brows furrowed and his mouth set in a thin line. Out of all the possible people, fate chooses to throw this particularly stunning one on his path not once, but twice. Maybe it could mean something. Levi stands there and stares, stares so hard he’s sure he’ll drill a hole through pretty Eren’s pretty head. From some hidden corner of his mind, the fucking doves and harps start singing again, and for fuck’s sake, he’s a grown-ass man who shouldn’t be daydreaming about someone who’s barely old enough to drink.  
  
Levi doesn’t know precisely for how long he’s been standing there and staring like a creep but the thin layer of snow that’s accumulated over his shoulders suggests that it’s been longer than what’s normal. Just as he’s convinced himself to get over it and carry on, Eren lifts his head up and glances around, his eyes going wide when he spots Levi.  
  
“Hey!” he calls out and leaps to his feet, and God, Levi is so not over it. He’s the opposite of over, he’s so, so under, trapped in the vibrant green of Eren’s eyes and being dragged deeper into the abyss by the minute. “It’s you!”  
  
“Yeah, it is,” Levi replies and feels blood rush to his face. It’s a stupid response, but what else is he supposed to say to that? Eren’s beaming at him like the fucking sun and that’s more than enough to leave him speechless, it seems.  
  
“Hi,” Eren repeats. There’s a stray snowflake caught in his hair that Levi want to brush away, and before he knows it he’s already reaching out for it. At the last minute, he manages to turn it into a sort of an awkward hand wave.  
  
“Hello,” he says and is about to continue, but the meow that suddenly escapes from Eren’s abdomen makes him forget what he was about to say. Levi’s gaze falls to the squirming lump under Eren’s jacket that he hadn’t even noticed until it let out a meow. Though he’s not nearly as familiar with Eren’s anatomy as he’d like to be, he’s fairly certain that something’s out of place here.  
  
“What are you doing?” Levi asks, growing only more curious when Eren crosses his arms and hunches over in a futile effort to draw attention away from his lively midsection.  
  
“Um, I was just on my way to class, actually.” Eren sounds carefree enough but there’s certain tension in his smile, which is no doubt due to the fact that he is very obviously hiding a cat under his jacket.  
  
“No I mean the fact that you’re very obviously hiding a cat under your jacket,” Levi states and sees something in Eren’s face relax at that. “Did someone tell on you again?”  
  
Eren sighs, his shoulders sagging as his slumps back down on to the bench. “I think so, yeah,” he says as he undoes the first couple of the buttons of his jacket, revealing the furry little creature huddled inside. Cat meows and reaches out with his paw, claws catching at Eren’s scarf. “Three days. He only got to spend three days with me until the new RA found out.”  
  
Levi’s itching to point out that it’s entirely his own fault for breaking the rules, but seeing that flawless face twisting into such a miserable expression makes him bite is tongue. “I see.” Taking a seat on the bench, Levi pauses to watch Cat squirm out of his warm cocoon. “What do you plan to do with him now?”  
  
“I have no idea,” Eren admits as he nibbles at his lower lip, appearing deep in thought and luckily not noticing how transfixed Levi is by his mouth. “I made him a cardboard nest in the alley by my dorm where I found him and now we’ve been hopping between the library and the coffee shop. I have my first midterm in an hour, though, so I’m going to try and keep him hidden under my jacket.”  
  
By now, Cat’s wriggled out from his hiding place and is making his way toward Levi’s shoulder. Once he gets there he perches right next to Levi’s ear, a deep purr sounding from his chest as his tail flicks at Levi’s face. They both stare at him, and when Levi glances discreetly at the fond look on Eren’s face, he swears they’re closer to one another than he’d thought.  
  
“He likes you,” Eren points out. He leans back, scratching under Cat’s chin. “That’s good. He tends to be a bit hostile to people at first.”  
  
“Well, he’s a cat. Cats are like that,” Levi remarks. Perhaps he has more in common with Cat than he’d thought. To fill the silence between them, he asks, “Whose midterm to you have?”  
  
“Introduction to the Scientific Method by Professor Jones,” Eren replies, rubbing his hands over his face.  
  
“Ouch,” Levi says with a grimace as the two of them share a knowing look. Professor Jones is the kind of person who organizes his ties by color and likes to quote Camus during everyday conversations. During last year’s staff Christmas dinner, Levi had the displeasure of sitting next to him and had to leave the table on three different occasions to stop himself from throwing his soup all over Jones’ tailor-made, hideously expensive and ugly plaid suit. Having the man teach you must be at least a hundred times worse.  
  
“He’s going to fail me if I show up with a cat,” Eren sighs in a tired voice. “Actually, he’ll fail me no matter what I do because I’ve spent about ten minutes studying for this exam, so I might as well go with my little ball of joy.” The said ball of joy paws at Levi’s cheek, luckily not using its claws. As he feels those small taps on his skin, something starts brewing at the back of his mind – something that is downright stupid and irresponsible and certainly not befitting of a grown-ass man, let alone a college professor.  
  
He regards Eren who is slumped back in defeat like a worm caught out in the rain and that’s all it takes to seal the deal.  
  
“How about,” Levi begins, but has to stop for a moment when Cat aims his paw at his mouth, “how about I take care of him for a few hours? Just for this one time so you can go take your midterm.” The suggestion causes Eren’s entire being light up, even though there’s still hesitation tugging at the corners of his lips.  
  
“Could you really do that?” he all but chirps, and in that moment, Levi’s pretty sure that he’d walk over the Atlantic Ocean if Eren asked him to. “You don’t have class?”  
  
“I do, but it’s just revision,” Levi says, shrugging with the shoulder that Cat’s not glued on to. “There’s going to be five, maybe six people there at best. No-one will notice a thing.”  
  
“Oh my God, you’re a lifesaver,” Eren groans, and for a tense few seconds, looks like he’s about to jump in to hug Levi. In the end, he chooses to just clap him on the back, careful to avoid Cat’s tail that’s swishing back and forth. “I don’t even know what to say. I’m going to pay you back somehow for this.”  
  
All kinds of possibilities come to Levi’s mind at that, but he shakes them off vehemently. “Don’t mention it. Besides, it’s only for a couple of hours,” he says with what one could almost call a smile.  
  
“I will, though,” Eren insist, fingers tapping an unsteady rhythm against the wooden bench. “Uh, can you maybe give me your number or something so I can text you once I’m done?”  
  
“Sure,” Levi agrees, and it isn’t until he’s typed in the last digit of his number into Eren’s phone that he realizes what’s happened here. It’s a good thing that Eren snatches his phone back rather quickly because all the sudden Levi’s hands are so sweaty and clumsy he’s sure he would have dropped it if he’d held on to it for any longer. Eren has his number, holy fuck. Eren said he’d text him, _holy fucking fuck._  
  
The realization is shocking enough to cause him to miss most of what Eren’s saying, but from the questioning look on his face, Levi gathers that he’s supposed to answer.  
  
“Yes,” he decides to say. A smirk rises to Eren’s features, the corners of his eyes crinkling up in the most endearing way.  
  
“I asked you what your name was,” he repeats with a wave of his phone, voice blooming with amusement. “For my contact list. Or shall I just put you down as ‘Yes’?”  
  
Levi feels his face burning as he fights the urge to bury himself into the frozen ground. Luckily Cat comes to his aid and butts the side of his face with his fuzzy head. It doesn’t actually help in any way, but he appreciates the effort. “It’s Levi,” he manages to choke out  
  
“Levi,” Eren tries it out as he types it in. It’s just a name and Levi’s heard it spoken countless times, but he can’t get enough of how smoothly it rolls off Eren’s lips. “Got it. I’ll let you know as soon as I finish. Thanks so much,” he breathes out. “Again. I should probably go and do some last-minute studying.”  
  
“You really should,” Levi replies like the academically-inclined and responsible adult he is. Cat contributes to the conversation by purring like a damn engine. Though they’ve established that Eren should go, he still lingers, legs tensed like he’s about to get up but not budging from his place.  
  
“If it’s not too weird,” Eren begins, but then pauses soon after, eyes fixed on the tip of Cat’s tail.  
  
“This is plenty of weird already, so go ahead,” Levi points out with a vague gesture at the cat sitting on his shoulder.  
  
Eren’s not entirely convinced, but the worrying edge in his voice eases at least a little when he suggests, “Once this is all cleared up I’ll gladly buy you coffee or something. You know, just to make up for all the trouble.”  
  
“Don’t worry about it, just go write that paper,” Levi says, trying his best to sound convincing. From the corner of his eye, he can see Cat gnawing on his hair. “We’ll be fine.”  
  
Despite of the reassurance, it still takes Eren a while to get going. Once he finally does, Levi’s left on the bench with Cat who seems comfortable purring away on his shoulder.  It’s just a little cat, Levi surmises. He can easily take care of one little cat for a few hours, revision classes or not. The fact that it’s _Eren’s_ cat only adds to his determination – he’ll prove his worth and keep Cat safe and sound with him. Eren has nothing to be concerned about.  
  
Though Cat likes Levi’s shoulder, he has no choice but to move him into his bag, right next to his lesson notes. Cat meows in protest at being picked up, but settles among Levi’s papers soon enough. He thinks he even hears him testing his teeth out on his calendar.  
  
Even as he walks, though with a slow pace, Cat doesn’t sound bothered. He’s crumpling up all of Levi’s papers and making a mess of his things if the noises are anything to go buy, but in the end, they’re just papers and things.  
  
Levi’s exceptionally slow walking means that he’s a good few minutes later for class. Not like it matters, though, since his predictions are correct and there’s a grand total of eight out of forty students who’d bothered to show up, two of them dozing off in the back row and the rest trying to look alert with varying success.  
  
Before anything else, Levi sets his bag on the floor with careful hands, and, after seeing that Cat’s decided to take a little nap, can start the lesson without any worries.  
  
Having taught this same course numerous times, he slaps up his slides as usual and starts reviewing the material that’ll be in the exam. It’s basic stuff and he breezes through it all routinely. A few students are taking notes, and especially when he moves on to the conventions of nineteenth-century literature, almost all the eyes on the room are on him. Even the two guys napping at the back are peering at the screen, and Levi feels oddly proud of his students.  
  
He’s in the middle of explaining the significance of using concrete examples in the exam when, to his surprise, he sees a hand shoot up.  
  
It’s Napping Guy #2, his mouth falling open in a yawn as he holds his hand up in the air. “This isn’t high school, we’ve established during the very first lesson of this course that you don’t have to put your hand up when you say something,” Levi quips as he changes the slide. “Do you have a question about the exam?”  
  
Napping Guy #2 brings his hand down slowly, eyes darting around the room. “Um, not about the exam, no,” he stammers, and Levi holds back the irritated sigh that nearly escapes him.  
  
“Then please don’t interrupt the class for such things.” With that, Levi returns to nineteenth-century literature, and has everyone on the edges of their seats as he goes through the exciting modernist writers whose works they’ve looked at during the course. At one point, he hears someone mutter an ‘oh my God’, presumably because of the sheer amount of material they’ll have to study, and Levi heartily agrees with their sentiment. While he’s a well-liked professor, he doesn’t hand out good grades easily.  
  
Just as Levi’s properly gotten into the swing of describing how to pick apart the exam question before answering it, he hears his bag give a loud meow and completely loses track of where he was.  
  
Time seems to stop completely as silence falls over the lecture hall. All is still, even the individual molecules of the air as Levi glances down at his bag and sees Cat’s head peeking out, his crystal blue eyes observing the students with interest.  
  
The strained silence continues as Levi glances over his audience whose captivation had most likely not been due to his superb teaching but because of the cat in his bag. He waits for something, for anything to happen that’ll shatter the heavy tension that’s fallen over the room. When no such thing comes, Levi clicks on to the next slide and clears his throat. After clearing his throat for the second time, he looks over at the title of the slide and carries on from that. He could be talking about the mating habits of emperor penguins and it wouldn’t matter at all because he knows that the only thing anyone will remember about this lecture is the cat.  
  
Nevertheless, Levi soldiers onwards, somehow getting through all the most important points with fifteen minutes of class still left. He forgets to mention a few small things, stutters and repeats himself, but since Cat’s diverting all the attention away from him, he doesn’t even feel bothered.  
  
“Now, does anyone have any questions,” Levi says, and it’s like an electrical current going through the seats as everyone perks up, “pertaining to the material or the exam that’s coming up next week?” His eyes are sharp and venomous as the glances over the small crowd that is now looking much less enthusiastic about bringing up the figurative elephant, which is a literal cat, in the room.  
  
One girl from the very first row is the only one to speak up. “Can we ask about the cat?” she questions, completely ignoring the look of disdain Levi sends her way.  
  
“What do you think, is the cat related to this class in any way?” he drawls, effectively shutting her up as she sits back with a shrug. “If there are no _real_ questions, please turn to page five of your syllabus where you’ll see the assessment criteria.” The sounds of paper being shuffled around obediently are like music to his ears – at least he has some of his authority left.  
  
The next fifteen minutes or so are without a doubt the longest fifteen minutes of his life. Every moment, he’s acutely aware of the purring coming from below and the stares that the source of said purring is attracting. Despite of the attention, Cat remains as unflappable as ever, his whiskers twitching as he smells out his new environment.  
  
The final straw comes when he wiggles out of the bag and someone in the first row _squees._  
  
That’s when Levi decides that they’ll call it a day. “Class dismissed,” he sighs, continuing before anyone can rush out of their seats. “Don’t touch the cat on your way out.” His stern glare is enough to make everyone stay at least three meters away from Cat, though Levi can see their disgusting fingers itching to come and pet him. Once the door closes after the last student, he lets out a long breath and starts counting.  
  
He’s sufficiently calm and gathered around forty-five, but keeps on going up to sixty just because it’s a nice, round number. Cat’s occupying himself by chewing on the leg of Levi’s chair.  
  
“Why the fuck do you have to bite at everything?” Levi huffs and, as expected, receives no response. Apparently even a solid block of wood is more interesting than him.  
  
After he’s packed his notes away, along with Cat who settles right by like he hadn’t just completely derailed Levi’s class, he digs out his phone from his pocket to see that he has two new messages. They’re both from a number not familiar to him, but he can guess who it is after reading the first one.  
  
_omg maybe i didnt fail after all, the exam wasnt so bad. where u at?_  
  
And then, sent just twenty minutes ago:

 _neways, txt me when ur free, we can meet at the park were we left off lol!:)_  
  
Though he’s so tempted to call Eren and give him a lecture about proper grammar and spelling, he fires away a text at him telling him that he’ll be there in five minutes. Only a few seconds afterwards, he receives a single emoticon in response.  
  
_:D_  
  
It’s only an emoticon, two simple characters, but somehow it looks like Eren with his illuminating smile. Goddamnit, Levi’s so, so fucked.

With Cat hidden in his bag as well as possible, he sets off. Luckily for him, he doesn’t run into anyone familiar because Cat will not stop shuffling around and Levi’s sure he looks very suspicious, fiercely holding on to his squirming bag as he makes his way down the halls.  
  
Eren’s waiting for him by that same park bench and he immediately darts up when he sees Levi.  His cheeks are tinted red from the cold but his expression is identical to the emoticon as he watches Levi approach. “How was it?” he asks, glancing at Levi’s restless bag. “I hope he wasn’t too bothersome.”  
  
Cat meows as he’s lifted out of the bag and into Eren’s waiting arms. “It was certainly an experience,” Levi admits. Now that he sees the relieved smile that’s tugging at Eren’s lips, he can say that it was worth it, though. “What are you going to do with him now?”  
  
He almost wished he hadn’t asked that, because Eren’s face clouds over immediately. “I have no idea,” he mumbles as he strokes along Cat’s back. “I think I’ll have to start looking for a place that’ll allow pets, but meanwhile... I’m sure I’ll find a friend or someone who can take him in for a while.”  
  
Levi can’t help but to raise his brows at that. With his head cocked to the side, he watches Eren rub at the nape of Cat’s neck. “You’d move out of your dorm because of a stray cat?” he questions, not quite believing his ears.  
  
“He’s my stray Cat.” Eren’s jaw is set in a tight line as his eyes move from Cat to Levi, the bright green nearly blinding him. “And yes, yes I would.”  
  
He can’t argue with the subtle determination in Eren’s features, the look in his eyes softening when Cat flicks his tongue over his fingers. The more Levi takes in the picture in front of him, the more his chest tightens – it’s just a cat, but Eren cares about it so much, and if he can get that invested in a little cat, imagine how Levi could make him blush and smile and laugh if he’d just get the chance.  
  
Yeah, Levi’s so fucked, and he’s about to get even more fucked.    
  
“If it’s not too weird,” he begins, and sees Eren’s beautiful eyes widen in recognition for the briefest of moments, “uh, I could take him in. Just temporarily until you find a new place. Since he likes me and all.”  
  
Eren looks like Christmas has come early for him, all but bouncing in place. “You could really do that?” he gasps, and Levi legitimately worries he might implode from the amount of joy contained within him. “Are you being serious right now?”  
  
“Yeah,” Levi nods along. Eren’s happiness contagious and a smile is making its way to Levi’s face as well. “Just over Christmas, for example. It’s no big deal, I have lots of room and a garden for him to explore.”  
  
This time Eren does jump in and wrap one arm around Levi in a tight, enthusiastic hug, a laugh bubbling out of him while grasping Cat in the other. It takes Levi by surprise at first, heat rising to his cheeks, but he bounces back soon enough and gives Eren’s back an awkward pat.  
  
“You’re unbelievable, seriously,” Eren’s babbling away, “this is seriously too much, I’m gonna feel really guilty for agreeing.”  
  
“Don’t. Feel guilty,” Levi mutters from where his face is smushed up against Eren’s shoulder. They’re still hugging, it’s been at least ten seconds and they’re _still hugging_ and if it hadn’t been weird before, it certainly is getting weird now. Luckily Eren lets him go at that very moment, his grin lighting up a roaring fire inside Levi. To steady himself, he speaks out, “It’ll be fine. Just for a while. Or for as long as you need to, whatever.”  
  
So, so fucked. First it was just a couple of minutes, then a couple of hours, and now it’s turned to ‘as long as you need to’.  
  
After Eren’s informed him of Cat’s various habits, his favorite foods, favorite napping places, fears, and dozens of more details that he forgets almost instantly, Levi returns Cat to his bag again. A very long goodbye that involves lots of cooing from Eren and a few meows from Cat follows before Levi can set off towards home once more. Eren promises to text him later in the evening, and while he knows that it’s not because of the reasons he’d prefer it to be, he still walks away with the hint of a smile lingering on his face.

 

   -   -   -

  
  
Life with Cat starts off with a vase shattered on his coffee table.  
  
It’s not really a huge loss since the vase had been A) hideous and B) an unwanted gift from his aunt. Levi has to clean the pieces off the table and the floor, though, which makes him slip out a few curse words. Cat himself is nowhere to be seen at first, but when Levi peers under the couch, he sees a pair of blue eyes staring back at him, wide and terrified.  
  
They stare at each other for a while, and very carefully, Levi reaches out his hand, only to have Cat flinch further under the couch. “It’s okay,” he whispers. “Did you get scared by the vase falling down? Come on.” He waggles his fingers a bit. “Don’t worry, I’m not mad. Just come out from under the couch.”  
  
Cat remains where he is despite of Levi’s coaxing, so he straightens out and leaves him be as he goes on to make dinner. Ham and carrots are Cat’s favorite, so he cuts them into small pieces and leaves the plate out in the living room, hoping it’ll lure him out of hiding. While he cuts up vegetables and potatoes for himself, his eyes keep shifting towards the plate that remains untouched. At one point, he accidentally cuts his finger and has to turn all his attention to the dinner to avoid turning it into a bloodbath.  
  
Once he’s done with all the chopping and looks over at the plate again, there are only a few pieces of ham left and no carrots at all. A glance under the couch and no Cat in sight leads Levi to venture into the bedroom where he finds Cat curled at the middle of the bed, napping away without a care in the world. He looks so content that Levi doesn’t dare to wake him up, instead retreating back into the kitchen to continue with dinner, an unusual warmth nestling somewhere in his chest.  
  
Later in the evening, that warmth only grows stronger when he checks his phone and finds a text from Eren. As usual, it’s peppered with that youthful excitement so characteristic of him.  
_  
hey!! :D how are things going w u two? omg hope he hasnt gnawed thru ur shoes._  
  
Shoes? Levi glances at his shoes that are safely stored in their rack and currently free of any teeth marks. His fingers flit across the screen as he types up a response.  
_  
**He eats shoes too? Everything’s fine, I fed him some carrots and ham and he’s sleeping now. He did break a vase, though.**_  
  
Levi’s barely put down his phone when there’s a reply from Eren.  
  
_ahh no!! i’m so sorry :( i can pay for wutever it cost, omg I swear hes usually well behaved.  
  
**Don’t worry, it was an ugly ass-vase anyway, he was doing me a favor, really :-)**_  
  
It’s the first emoticon he’s ever typed, and by God, he hopes it will be the last one. He stares at it on the screen, wondering if he should erase it. Would it be too forward? In the end, he decides to fuck it, as he’s decided to fuck many things over the last week or so – their college’s housing policy, being a proper adult and professor, Eren, probably.  
  
This time he doesn’t even bother swatting that thought away, but instead allows it to hover at the back of his head as presses ‘send’ and then chucks his phone to the side before his fantasies start bleeding into his texts.  
  
It isn’t until next morning that he notices the last few texts Eren had sent him.  
  
_aww man u r far too patient :) but ye its kinda lonely w/o him, can i come and visit him tomorrow if its not too weird?? (har har see whut i did there;)  
  
_ The second message had been sent at around ten pm when Levi thinks he might have been in the shower.  
_  
guess u and cat r asleep by now, sweet dreams!! :*_  
  
The reason he’d even picked up his phone in the first place was to call his mechanic about the car, but now he’s left clutching at his chest as he gasps like a fish on dry land. Eren wants to come and visit, holy fucking fuck on a stick. Granted, he wants to come and visit Cat and not him, but it still means that Eren will be in his house, Eren with his radiant presence and eyes that could bring Levi to his knees.  
  
Needless to say, he misses his bus that day as he bumbles through his morning routine, mind clouded over with thoughts of brilliant green. Thank goodness he doesn’t have any real lectures but only exams to supervise because he’s rendered completely unable to do any real work.  
  
Around lunch time, he finally remembers his car.  
  
The mechanic informs him that it’s all fixed now and ready for pick-up, and Levi breathes out a sigh of relief. He agrees to drop by during his lunch break, and once he’s hung up, is left staring at the screen as he recalls that he hadn’t even replied to Eren’s text.  
  
His fingers shake as he hovers them over the screen, reading the messages Eren sent over and over. Finally, Levi types up a response with his address, telling Eren to come over any time after five pm.  
  
For the rest of the day, it’s like there’s a flock of wild flesh-eating butterflies in his stomach. Every minute he spends sitting in quiet classrooms staring at the paperwork in front of him while his students toil away by their exams feels like a small eternity.  
  
The clock on the wall strikes four to signal the end of his last midterm, and Levi’s the first one to jump up as he orders the students to bring their papers to the front. As soon as he’s shoved them all in his bag, he’s out the door.  
  
Being able to drive home from work is a luxury he’s missed dearly. He gets home forty minutes earlier than he would with the bus, so that means forty extra minutes to panic about Eren coming over. During that time, Levi goes over all the possible scenarios in his head, starting with an accidental fire and ending with the two of them wrapped up in each other’s embrace. The sad thing is that former is far more likely to occur than the latter.  
  
The short ring of the doorbell jolts him out of his thoughts, his pulse pounding in his ears as he pushes himself up from the couch and on to unsteady legs. Eren’s here, Eren’s literally just behind his door and about to walk in. The hallway feels like it goes on forever, and at the end of it he can see a blurry silhouette through the glass panes of the door. Levi fixes his hair in front of the mirror one last time before he grips on to the handle and pushes the door open.  
  
Eren’s standing on the front steps with his windswept hair and wild eyes, the hesitance on his face soon replaced by a smile when he sees Levi. Breath catching in his throat, Levi could swear that his heart stops for a moment or two as he drinks in the sight of Eren’s cheeks that are flushed from the cold.  
  
“Hi,” Eren greets him in a relieved voice. “Wow, I thought I was in the wrong place at first. Your house is really fancy.” He’s not sure if he’s just imagining, but Eren sounds almost nervous.  
  
“It’s just a house,” he says with a shrug, moving aside to let Eren in.  
  
“Are you kidding me? This is ten times fancier than my dorm.” Eren’s arm brushes briefly against his as he passes, and it’s so dumb to get so worked up over something so small but he still tenses up, skin burning underneath his clothes as he wonders what it would feel like having Eren pressed up even closer against him without all the bothersome layers of fabric.  
  
“Just leave your jacket over there,” Levi says, jerking his head in the direction of the closet while trying to shake off the images of bared tan skin out of his head. “Cat’s somewhere in the living room, I think.” Because that’s what Eren’s here for, just to check up on Cat, he reminds himself.  
  
As Eren ventures deeper into his house, his face grows more and more astounded. “Holy shit,” he breathes out as he lays eyes on Levi’s rather ordinary fireplace. “Seriously, how can you afford this?”  
  
“With money?” Levi suggests with a raise of his brows. It’s been a long time since he’s seen the inside of a dorm, but nowadays they must be complete dumps if his humble house is enough to impress Eren. “Cat! Come over here!”  
  
A tiny pink nose peeks out from between the pillows on the couch, and as Eren takes a seat with his hand extended, Cat reaches out with his head to butt at his fingers. “Hi there, little buddy,” he coos, stroking Cat’s ears while Levi hovers behind him, not sure what to do or where to be. He cannot believe that Eren is sitting there on his couch, blissfully unaware of the effect he’s having on Levi as he pets Cat’s fur in slow motions. This was a bad idea, this was a horrible idea, because now that he sees how well Eren fits into his house he’ll soon want him to stay forever.  
  
“Do you, um, do you want a cup of coffee or something?” Levi suggests, his mouth uncomfortably dry all the sudden. With an eager nod, Eren glances over at him, and have his features always had that soft, somehow intimate glow?  
  
“Yes, that would be lovely, thank you,” he agrees. While Eren’s catching up with Cat, Levi goes off to the kitchen to make then coffee and also to calm the hell down. As he leans his back against the door of the fridge, he can faintly hear Eren’s voice gushing and babbling nonsense to Cat, which is not making the task of calming down any easier.  
  
Willing the tremble away from his voice, Levi calls out, “Milk or sugar?”  
  
“Both, please,” comes the response. He should’ve known that someone as sweet as Eren would also take their coffee as unbearably sweet.  
  
Though the mechanics of his own coffee machine that he’s used daily for the past five years are nearly incomprehensible to him, eventually he succeeds in brewing them some coffee. Levi could go out to the living room while it drips, but then he’d have to talk to Eren and goodness knows he can’t do that without getting lost in those eyes. Even now when they’re in different rooms it’s proving difficult – Levi hears Eren’s voice call out louder this time, but he’s too wrapped up in its melodious sound to make any sense of the words.  
  
“Uh, what was that?” he has to ask, hands clutching on to the edge of the counter in front of him.  
  
“I was just saying that Cat seems to really like your couch,” Eren states with a hint of apprehension. “I hope he doesn’t chew through it because I’m pretty sure I can’t afford to pay for that.”  
  
“No, no, don’t worry about it,” Levi rushes to respond as he pours them two cups of piping hot coffee. As adorable as Eren sounds when he’s concerned about such trivial things, Levi doesn’t want him to feel uncomfortable in his house. “It’s just furniture, he can chew on it if he wants to.”  
  
The warm glance Eren gives him when he emerges from the kitchen makes his stomach flip upside down as he rushes to place the mugs down on the table to avoid dropping them. “Not even kidding, you have the patience of a saint,” Eren declares with a shake of his head. His fingers briefly touch Levi’s when he reaches for the coffee and whoops, there goes all Levi’s previously gathered composure. “I don’t even know what to say to properly show my appreciation.”  
  
Oh, Levi has a few ideas, but since most of them are less than decent, he decides to bite his tongue. “It’s no problem,” he croaks as he sits down, Eren’s keen gaze still heavy on him. To get his mind on something other than the fact that they’re sitting just a short distance away from each other, he takes a sip of his coffee that’s scalding hot as it slides down his throat and leaves a sharp burning in its wake.  
  
“So, I dropped by at the housing department earlier,” Eren starts off, his attention falling back to Cat who’s climbing out from between the pillows and into his lap. “Apparently it’ll take well into January to arrange switching dorms, and even then they can’t guarantee that pets will be allowed at whatever dorm happens to have rooms available.” He goes on to describe his visit and the exceptionally rude receptionist who’d received him while Levi’s left clinging on to that first thought. Well into January, so that’s what, four or five weeks at the very least? He can deal with that. In fact, he can deal with that quite well because it means at least five-six weeks during which he can continue to admire Eren’s pretty face.  
  
Maybe, just maybe, he could somehow even get another hug from him. The mere thought of Eren in his arms sends a shiver through Levi as he glances at those lively hands that are gesturing along with his explanation. When Eren suddenly stops talking and looks at him, Levi realizes that he’s fucked up again, having allowed all his words to flow in through one ear and out the other.  
  
“Yes,” he tries out, because surely that response can’t go wrong for the second time. Lo and behold, a grateful smile comes to grace Eren’s lips.  
  
“You’ve seriously saved my holidays, thank you so, so much. It would be way too stressful for him to be dragged along for the plane ride. Actually, I don’t think animals are even allowed in the cabin,” Eren remarks, shrugging. “If you have him for Christmas I’ll gladly take him off your hands for New Year’s Eve.”  
  
Apparently Levi’s agreed to look after Cat over the holidays. That’s better than good with him – now he’ll have a valid reason to not make the drive to his dad’s Christmas party. “Okay, yes, that’s okay,” he confirms with a nod. “You’re out of town for the holidays, then?” A fact that Eren has most likely already stated, but he doesn’t appear to mind repeating himself a bit  
  
“Yeah, my parents live near the coast and I’m going to stay with them for a few days,” he says, absently combing through Cat’s tail. “But if something comes up with him you can always give me a call and I’ll try to pick up.”  
  
“We’ll be just fine, I’m sure.” Now that the coffee’s cooled down, Levi raises it to his lips, taking a gulp as his mind swirls over the possible topics of conversations – the weather’s a classic choice, though a boring one, school might be good as well since the midterms have just ended, what else?  
  
He’s secretly relieved when Eren takes the reins, shifting around to get more comfortable as he asks, “What are you doing for Christmas? I hope I didn’t mess up your plans.”  
  
The apologetic edge in his voice makes Levi scoot closer without realizing, striving to assure Eren that his sudden appearance in Levi’s life is all but unwelcome. “I didn’t have any plans, really,” he exclaims, straying to lock eyes with Eren and though the contact lasts only for a fraction of a second, Levi has trouble remembering what he was going to say the next. “Just spending time with the family as well. I’m not much of a Christmas person, to be honest.”  
  
Eren gives a laugh. “Yeah, I can tell,” he replies, nodding towards the worn garland hanging over the fireplace that happens to be the only Christmas decoration Levi’s bothered to hang up. “It’s safe to assume you live alone, then?” Eren appears completely innocent as he sits there and sips his coffee, perhaps even too much so, and Levi’s heart skips a few beats when he entertains the thought that Eren could be asking due to a more personal type of interest.  
  
“Uh, yes. It’s just me here. And Cat now, of course,” Levi adds as he grips on to his mug tighter. It’s a terrible thought that he banishes off as soon as it shows up, but Eren looks really good sitting there on his couch, petting Cat and drinking coffee. He looks like ( _no, no, don’t go there_ , the more rational part of his brain is screaming) he belongs there.  
  
“At least there’s lots of space for him here. I think he was getting a bit frustrated with my tiny dorm room,” Eren says with an approving hum. His long fingers seize petting Cat in favor of wrapping tightly around the mug and soaking up the warmth it’s emitting. “Though it might be because I haven’t been very good company, studying for exams and all.”  
  
Remembering Eren’s predicament the previous day, Levi asks, “Think you’ll pass Intro to the Scientific Method?”  
  
“I think so, yeah. All thanks to you.” Eren gives him a tiny nudge with his elbow and sends a swarm of butterflies through Levi’s stomach. “Probably won’t get an A, but if I manage to pass that’s enough for me.”  
  
“You’ll pass,” Levi assures him and gets a kind smile in response. “Professor Jones is a lazy fuck, he hates making retake exams.” Though mildly taken aback by his choice of words, Eren seems to agree, the corners of his lips twitching up as he takes a sip of his coffee.  
  
“Pretty sure nearly all the professors are lazy fucks, to be honest,” he chuckles, and a choked sound escapes Levi as he tries to trump down his laughter. The kid has some balls, at least, and knowing his colleagues, Levi can’t argue with that.  
  
“They really are,” he agrees. Cat’s curled up in the space between them, napping and completely oblivious to the pleasant tension that at least Levi feels hanging in the air.  
  
“Good to know it’s not just the science department, then,” Eren states, relaxing into the cushions as he drinks down more of his coffee. “I’m a biochemistry major, by the way. First year and already getting in trouble for breaking the rules.” He flashes a devilish smirk that Levi wants to lick right off his lips  
  
“At least you’re breaking rules over something that matters.” Levi rakes his fingers carefully through Cat’s fur as to not wake him. “And as long as the college is getting your money, they’ll never kick you out.”  
  
“Sounds like college,” Eren says with a nod, an amused glimmer in his eye. “What about you, then?”  
  
“Uh, what about me?” Levi has to ask because he’d once again gotten too lost in the unbelievable sight of pretty Eren sitting on his couch and exuding a nearly ethereal aura, so close but still not close enough for Levi’s liking.  
  
“What’s you major?” Eren asks him and he raises his brows once the question sinks in.  
  
“Excuse me?” Maybe he’d misheard.  
  
“Your major,” Eren repeats in a clearer voice. “Probably not anything science-related since I haven’t seen you around before.” There’s no hint of sarcasm or anything else in his expression than pure curiosity, but Levi’s still not sure whether he’s kidding or not.  
  
“I’m a professor,” he speaks out and watches Eren’s pretty face go through a variety of emotions – confused, horrified and finally extremely horrified. “You knew that, right?”  
  
“No, I did not know that,” Eren manages to respond, his beautiful eyes wide and his posture suddenly gone stiff. “I, uh, I just assumed you were a student since you’re so, so…”  
  
“Don’t say short,” Levi interrupts his stuttering. In an instant, the previous pleasant tension has been replaced by an air of something Levi can’t quite name.  
  
“Sorry, sorry. Okay. No problem,” Eren says, his mug clattering against the coffee table. He buries his head into his hands as he exclaims, “Okay, this is really weird.”  
  
You don’t know the half of it, Levi thinks as he sighs, mainly the half about my hopeless infatuation with you. “I’ve seen weirder,” he replies as he shifts around, but no matter what way he sits, the daunting feeling that he’s somehow fucked this up beyond repair doesn’t go anywhere. Eren doesn’t seem any more at ease, so he goes on. “It’s not that weird for students and professors to be friends over a cat.”  
  
That makes Eren raise his head as he stares into nothingness, all trace of smile gone from his face. “Okay. You’re right. Friends. Right,” he says in a toneless voice. “Sorry. Maybe I overreacted a bit. I was just surprised.” Even so, there’s anxiousness tugging at his features as he straightens out. “Yeah. I should probably go, you’ll have him over the holidays and, uh, I’ll text you once I’m back in town, okay?”  
  
“Okay,” Levi agrees, though he’s sensing that the situation is far from okay. However, he can’t do anything other than follow Eren to the door, the silence between them so stifling that he wants to grab Eren by the shoulders and shake him and demand something else than this wordless goodbye.  
  
“I promise I’ll text you later, I’m not just dumping him on you or anything,” Eren explains as he’s toeing on his shoes, eyes on anything but Levi. “I just remembered that, that I should probably go. Yeah.” He halts with his hand on the door handle, sending one last unreadable glance Levi’s way.  
  
“Yeah. Okay,” Levi says, fighting to swallow down the persistent tightness that settles in his throat. “I’ll talk to you later.” With that, Eren’s out the door.  
  
For a long time, Levi simply stands in the hallway, staring at Eren’s blurry silhouette through the glass panes until it disappears into the distance and all that remains is a heavy uncertainty weighing him down. Eren’s departure had been so sudden that it isn’t until now that Levi begins to process what just took place. Did he say something to offend Eren? Despite of his claims that everything’s okay, Levi can read all the other signs well enough to know that there’s something more to it.  
  
As if sensing his unease, Cat spends most of the evening sitting on his shoulder and purring in his ear in an effort to comfort him. It doesn’t do much; if anything, the sight of Cat just reminds Levi of his gorgeous but flighty owner who’d been close enough to touch one second and then gone in the next. Over and over Levi rewinds their conversations in his head and fails to find any leads. He can understand Eren being surprised finding out he’s not actually a student, but it shouldn’t have shaken him up that much.  
  
There’s something missing from this picture, and though he tosses and turns through the night, he can’t find it.  
  
Cat wakes him up at the crack of dawn by sitting on his chest and meowing loudly until he at last reaches out a groggy hand to pet him. All the wants to do is bury himself under the covers and sleep the day away, but after half an hour of laying around and feeling sorry for himself he grows too antsy to stay still and has to get up.  
  
Passing by the couch on his way to the kitchen reminds him of Eren, making himself breakfast and morning coffee reminds him of Eren, even the pattern on the dishrag somehow brings Eren to mind.  
  
After Levi’s set out Cat’s breakfast of chicken and beef, he plants his ass on the couch (“Eren,” the leather creaks under him, and with every change in position, “Eren, Eren, Eren.”) and vows to not get up all day. With a click of the remote, he switches on the TV and grabs himself a blanket, ready for a marathon or two.  
  
Only a few hours into his self-imposed exile, just as he’s finished watching the first season of his favorite show on Netflix, a persistent banging sounds from his door. Levi gives a pained sigh and stumbles up from where he’d sank into the cushions. There are only two people in the world who would announce their arrival in such a loud way and neither one of them will take no for an answer. Besides, they both have a spare key if Levi remembers correctly, so perhaps it’s better to face them voluntarily and hold on to some of his dignity.  
  
As soon as he’s gotten the door open, he gets a face full of red fabric as a hat of some description is forced on to his head. “There, he’s looking much more festive already,” he hears Isabel laugh as he yanks the Santa hat away from his eyes, though the sight in front of him is not one he’d like to see. Isabel and Farlan are standing there and wearing identical Santa hats to his, though the latter doesn’t look quite as enthusiastic. Levi’s sure he sees a Christmas sweater peeking out from under Isabel’s jacket as they both let themselves in, ignoring his protests.  
  
“Christmas party today, hope you haven’t forgotten,” she sing-songs as she makes her way into the living room.  
  
“I have a little problem,” Levi begins, but is soon interrupted.  
  
“Yeah, your car, I heard about that. No problem,” Farlan chimes in. He has a fucking wreath around his neck and it’s the most ridiculous accessory Levi’s ever seen. “We’re carpooling this year. You, me, Isabel and a few cousins we’re picking up along the way.”  
  
“No, it’s not my car,” Levi sighs and tries to search for the right words when he hears Isabel let out a gasp.  
  
“Oh my God,” she exclaims, making both Levi and Farlan turn in her direction. She’s staring at the fluffy black ball curled up in the armchair and it’s staring right back at her with startled blue eyes.  
  
“It’s not mine,” Levi blurts out the first thing he can think of while both of his siblings look like they’re about to flip their shit.  
  
Cat fumbles up when Isabel reaches a careful hand in his direction. “Oh my God, it’s a little kitty cat,” she whispers, and when Cat ambles forward to sniff at her fingers, she lets out a strangled noise. “There is a kitty cat in your house.”  
  
“Yes, I know,” Levi replies, an irritated crease in his brow. “That’s the problem.”  
  
“That is the opposite of a problem,” Farlan remarks as he stalks closer, treading softly as if to not scare Cat. As usual, Cat gives no fucks, only meowing happily as two pairs of hands come to pet him, soaking up the attention.  
  
“Just look how adorable it is!” Isabel gushes, brimming with excitement as she turns to Levi who’s left standing there while his siblings ignore him in favor of Cat. “Is it a boy or a girl? What’s its name?”  
  
“Boy, Cat,” Levi replies, slinking back down on to where he’d been wallowing just moments ago. “I’m taking care of him over Christmas so the party’s a no go.”  
  
“Oh, you’re a feisty one, aren’t you?” Isabel says when Cat gives her fingers a small nibble. “What’s its name?”  
  
“I told you already, it’s Cat,” Levi states and receives two blank stares.  
  
“A cat named Cat,” Farlan seeks to confirm, and as Levi nods, continues, “Whose bright idea was that?”  
  
“Not mine, I told you that as well,” Levi replies, blowing out a long breath as he chases off the vibrant green creeping into his thoughts.  
  
“Hi Cat, it’s nice to meet you.” Isabel waggles her fingers at the feline, her face split in a grin. “Are you ready to come and party with us? Ooh, we can make you a little Santa hat on our way over, that’d be so cute!” The words make Levi whip his head around to stare at her so hard that he swears he hears a crick.  
  
“Uh, no,” he says in a truly amazing rebuttal.  
  
“Come on, you say that every year,” Farlan points out, slinging a leisurely arm around his shoulders. “Besides, you look like you could use something to cheer you up.” He gestures vaguely at the pajamas Levi hadn’t bothered changing out of and his full Netflix queue visible on the TV screen. Now that someone else points it out, Levi has to admit that it all makes for a pretty pathetic scene.  
  
“Yeah, I wasn’t gonna mention it, but now that you did already,” Isabel begins as she lifts Cat into her lap, giving Levi a look that’s much more careful than what he’s used to, “did something happen?”  
  
“No, nothing happened,” Levi’s quick to assure, though Isabel and Farlan don’t seem to be buying it. “I mean, something did happen since I have Cat, but nothing special, no.”  
  
Farlan claps him on the shoulder before getting up. “In that case, let’s go pack your bags,” he announces in that voice Levi knows all too well – ‘no’ will not be an acceptable answer. “I heard that this year there’s gonna be a chocolate fountain.”  
  
Leaving Isabel and Cat bonding on the couch, Levi reluctantly shuffles after Farlan who’s already wandered into his bedroom and thrown the doors of his closet open. He grabs the closest few shirts and tosses them over on the bed while asking Levi, “Where’s your suitcase? Take along the larger one just in case.”  
  
“What’s gotten you so enthusiastic?” Levi replies with a question of his own, pulling out the suitcase from under the bed.  
  
Farlan throws a pair of jeans at him. “Chocolate fountain,” he repeats, visions of limitless chocolate in his eyes. “And besides, we didn’t drop by on father’s day this year so not going on Christmas either would be awful of us, don’t you agree?”  
  
It would, but Levi’s not about to say that out loud. Instead he shoves his clothes into the suitcase as Farlan passes them over to him. “In all seriousness.” Farlan pauses to examine to pair of socks he’s holding like they’re the most interesting thing he’s ever seen. “If there’s something bothering you, you can always talk to us about it.”  
  
“Yes, I know, thank you,” Levi says with a shake of his head. While he’s grateful for the support, it’s not very easy talking about it when even he himself doesn’t quite know what _it_ is.  
  
Though Farlan complains about all his shirts being either white or black, they’re soon packed up and ready to go. Before Levi knows it, he’s shoved in the backseat of Isabel’s car with a perplexed but inquisitive Cat who seems to fall in love with the seatbelt at first sight, swatting at it repeatedly while they pull out from Levi’s driveway.  
  
There’s no way out now – Isabel’s already locked the doors from the inside with her keys, a fact that she announces in a loud voice when she spots Levi giving a longing glance at his house. From the rearview mirror, Levi can see the terrifyingly festive spark in her eyes as she turns on the radio.  
  
“Oh, this one is my favorite!” she yells, the sound of Jingle Bells jingling through the car as Levi sinks lower in his seat and prepares for whole three hours of jingling.  
  
Jingle Bells turn to Silver Bells and then to Winter Wonderland and dozens of other songs Levi can’t even name, and by the time they stop by at the next town over to pick up their cousins, he’s so jolly he can barely stomach it. So far Cat’s been napping with him in the back, not at all bothered by the constant stream of holiday cheer flowing from the radio, but now Levi has to pull him into his lap as his three cousins squish in next to him.  
  
The moment they notice Cat their eyes go as wide as plates, and that should’ve been enough to alert Levi of what’s to come.  
  
The youngest one who’s only seven makes it her mission to craft a Santa hat for Cat from the supplies Isabel’s stashed in her car. Red felt, cotton and gold glitter are soon littered across the seat and the floor and their laps and also somehow the ceiling. They take a bathroom break at a nearby gas station where the clerk behind the counter snickers at Levi when he goes to buy some coffee, and he later finds out it was due to the glitter that had ended up strewn in his hair.  
  
The end result of all the hard work is a wonky yet personal Santa hat that fits Cat just right. To Levi’s surprise, Cat doesn’t mind it – he shakes his head for a moment or two, but other than that, he’s as happy as ever, purring away at the center of attention.  
  
The practicalities of bringing Cat along don’t come to Levi’s mind until they’re pulling up at his dad’s house. “What if someone’s allergic to cats?” he intones after Isabel’s turned off the engine.  
  
“They’re not,” she replies in a confident voice. “I’m sure of it. Aunt Morgan owns five cats and is always covered in their hair wherever she goes and no-one’s ever complained about it.”  
  
Before they can take more than a few steps, the front door opens to reveal their dad peeking out. He’s wearing his trademark bowler hat, but it’s been decked out with a few boughs of holly and a small snowman figurine. “About time you showed up,” he drawls as a smile rises to his face. “Come on in from the cold.” Levi hadn’t noticed before, but it is cold, the chill creeping in from the neckline of his jacket as he follows the others inside.  
  
His dad stops him with a hand by his shoulder, eyes fixed on the cat he’s holding. “What,” he asks with an indescribable look, “is that?”  
  
“It’s Cat,” Isabel chimes in. “He’s a cat and he’s… “  
  
“Incredibly adorable, aren’t you?” his dad continues as he strokes at Cat’s head, the look in his eyes awfully similar to Isabel’s just around three hours ago. “Welcome to the family, little friend.”  
  
Levi tries to explain that, no, Cat isn’t really part of the family, but no-one seems to listen to him. At one point, he has no idea where Cat even is because there’s a swarm of eager relatives all wanting to pet him and talk gibberish to him. Aunt Morgan nearly pees herself in excitement over Cat, not to mention the dozens of younger cousins who are climbing over each other to play with him.  
  
In addition, there really is a chocolate fountain. It’s not as high as Levi would have expected, but the chocolate tastes great. He goes for seconds and then thirds, and is about to go for fourths when his dad’s voice calling out stops him.  
  
“That’s a lot of chocolate, son,” he states as he appears next to Levi who nearly jumps into the air. His dad has the uncanny ability to creep up on people without making a sound.  
  
“I didn’t know there was a limit on it,” Levi quips and takes more chocolate anyway. The buffet is emptier than usual and there’s no line for the chocolate, so he’s going to enjoy it to the fullest.  
  
His dad chuckles. “There isn’t, help yourself,” he says. “But a little birdy told me that you’ve been a bit down lately, more so than usual, I mean.”  
  
This conversation again. “No, no, it’s fine,” Levi protests, feeling his dad stare at him intently. “It’s just been a bit stressful lately, having Cat and all.” He nods towards the sizable crowd gathered over in the salon, fawning over Cat.  
  
“I see.” His dad falls silent for a second or two before continuing, “How did you end up getting him?”  
  
“It’s a long story,” Levi simply replies. “I’m only keeping him for a while and then giving him back to his real owner. Hopefully.”  
  
“Hopefully?” his dad repeats with a questioning raise of his brows  
  
“Yeah. We kind of…,” Levi starts off, mind reeling over what to say. “Things are a bit weird between us.”  
  
“I see.” His dad is not a man of many words, and for once Levi’s glad for that. “Talking helps, though. I know that’s not very convincing coming from me,” he laughs as he takes some chocolate for himself as well. “Just ask yourself, what’s the worst thing that could happen? That’s always been my philosophy, and look where it got me.” He spreads out his hands, standing there in the dining room of his huge house that’s more like a manor, chocolate in hand.  
  
Levi considers on his words, a flutter rising up in the pit of his stomach when he remembers how Eren had looked at him just the previous day. “Maybe you’re right,” he admits, and his dad gives a wide smile.  
  
“That’s the spirit, son,” he bellows as he claps him on the back with a firm hand. “Seize the day, grab life by the balls and don’t let go even if you’re dragged through literal shit.”  
  
It’s an excellent way to put it – while his dad isn’t much of a talker, he makes up for it in quality. Levi downs a good few glasses of chocolate, though, before he finally toughens up and even considers confronting Eren.  
  
He cannot think of a single smart thing to open up with, so the text he sends Eren only contains one simple sentence:  
  
**Are you sure everything’s okay?**  
  
Only minutes after he’s sent the message, his phone begins chirping loudly in his pocket, signaling an incoming call. He’s not surprised to see Eren’s number flash on the screen, but he still feels his nerves flare up, only picking up after he’s made sure that his voice isn’t trembling.  
  
“H-hello?” Damn it, he wasn’t supposed to sound so uncertain.  
  
“Hi.” Eren’s voice has a touch of hoarseness to it, slow and tired as he goes on. “Everything’s not okay.”  
  
Levi’s heart sinks at that. “Yeah, I figured that,” he sighs. There are too many people around, their greedy eyes glued on to the chocolate fountain, so he moves into the kitchen for more privacy, taking a seat by the counter.  
  
A silence follows, during which he can hear Eren’s breathing on the other end, can practically see him clutching on to his phone with his kissable lips perhaps twisting into a frown.  
  
“So,” Eren says, and then stops. There’s an exasperated sigh before he goes on. “I don’t know where to begin.”  
  
“Begin at the start,” Levi suggests as he settles in, eyes fixed on the garland hung over the large kitchen window and the snow gently falling outside. “Or at the end, whichever suits you best.”  
  
“Okay. Okay.” Eren clears his throat. “First of all, I’m sorry for rushing out like that and making things even weirder. I guess I was kind of shocked, I don’t know.”  
  
“That’s fine,” Levi intones. In a way, talking on the phone is easier because now he can’t get distracted by his face, but then again, just hearing Eren’s voice on the other end isn’t enough – he wants to sit on the same couch with Eren and to see him and to feel his presence in the same space.  
  
“Second, I’m going to drop by on Friday evening and take Cat off your hands.” Even over the phone, his voice is strained and frustrated somehow. “Are you going to be home by then?”  
  
The air in his lungs feels heavy as he struggles to understand the question. Something’s very, very wrong here. “Yeah, I’ll be home,” Levi says slowly. “Just, uh, are you sure that you can manage? I can keep him until you find a place that allows pets, it’s no problem.”  
  
“It is kind of a problem,” Eren argues with a forced laugh.  
  
“Why?” Levi interrupts him, a faint buzz rising up from under his skin as he tries to grasp on to anything Eren’s giving him in an effort to discern this whatever-you-call-it that’s wedged its way between the two of them.  
  
There’s a long silence before Eren speaks up again. “Because,” he says pointedly. “Because. God, this is really weird. I had no idea you were a professor when I first asked you to help sneak in my cat.”  
  
_It’s now or never, grab life by the balls_ , Levi reminds himself as he states, “I’m glad you did, though. It’s been weird, yeah, but, but not in a bad way.”  
  
“You think so?” Eren sounds almost wistful as he says that, which Levi supposes is a step above the irritation that had laced his voice just moments earlier. “But, it’s, ah, not exactly allowed, is it?”  
  
“You knew that already when you first snuck him in,” Levi points out, but Eren simply laughs.  
  
“I didn’t mean that part,” he says, his tone growing hesitant as he carries on. “I mean the part about me being a student and you being a professor.”  
  
Levi shrugs, and then remembers that Eren can’t see him. “Yeah, maybe it’s a bit uncommon, but like I said, not in a bad way,” he says, itching to assure Eren that he has nothing to apologize for since he’s certainly not the one at fault here.  
  
There’s a stifled noise on the other end. “Yeah, not yet, but I’m going to make it weird in a very, very bad way soon,” Eren argues, his voice taking on a nearly hysterical edge that commands all of Levi’s attention.  
  
Fingers clutched around his phone so hard his knuckles are going white, Levi dares, “Go on, then. I’m sure it won’t be that bad.” He finds himself on the edge of his seat, hanging on to each little sound carrying over the phone as his thoughts go to all sorts of places – has Eren somehow found out about his huge crush and is going to blackmail him? No, surely Eren would be too sweet to do something like that, but Levi still can’t shake the apprehension as he waits for him to speak up.  
  
“You have no idea, man,” Eren sighs. “No idea. I had a whole speech written up just for this occasion. I don’t have it on me right now, though, so I guess I’ll have to improvise.”  
  
Now Levi’s s curious he can barely sit still, rising up to retrieve himself a glass of water. “Go on, I’m listening,” he repeats, drumming his fingers against the countertop.  
  
“Okay.” Eren clears his throat. “Remember how you said that it wasn’t that weird for a professor and a student to be friends over a cat?”  
  
“Faintly, yes.”  
  
“Well, I don’t want to be friends,” Eren says. With that one sentence, he’s made Levi’s heart shatter into a thousand little pieces. He should have expected it, because really, someone as bright and lovely as Eren probably has much better company lining up around the block, but it still hurts.  
  
Fighting the urge to hang up and go bury himself into the tall piles of snow outside, he replies, “Well, that’s fine. As soon as you come and get Cat I won’t bother you anymore.” Though he tries not to sound bitter, he can’t quite keep the resentment out of his voice.  
  
“No, no, no,” Eren stammers after a short silence, verging on panic. “I didn’t mean it like that, I, uh, meant it the exact other way around.”  
  
Levi frowns, truly at a loss for words. “I don’t follow,” he ends up saying, because while he thinks on that statement, it continues to make no sense to him.  
  
“Don’t make me spell it out,” Eren groans, his voice muffled. “Okay, maybe, uh, I might have a little thing for you, which was perfectly okay until yesterday because I honestly thought you were a student, but now that I know otherwise it’s just really weird, and I probably shouldn’t have even said anything but now it’s out there so you can make what you will of it.”  
  
After he’s divulged all that, there’s complete silence. It’s so quiet that Levi thinks he can hear his individual heartbeats as his mouth falls open slightly. “Wait, what thing?” he questions, because surely Eren can’t mean it in _that_ way, it’s just wishful thinking on Levi’s part.  
  
Eren sounds like he’s about to die from the embarrassment as he repeats in a desperate tone, “Please don’t make me spell it out.”  
  
Finally it clicks and Levi draws in a sharp breath. “Are you kidding?” he asks just to be sure. This cannot be true, this cannot be true, he tells himself, but even though he waits, the scene remains as it is.  
  
Eren sighs before responding, “I wish I was.”  
  
Eren has a thing for him. A _thing_ thing. For him.  
  
“Okay. Um.” Levi hands are shaking as he wills his voice to remain steady. “What happens now, then?”  
  
“I don’t know.” All of the sudden, Eren comes across as almost timid. “I’ll come and pick up Cat tomorrow and it’ll be so awkward and then I guess I’ll go dig a hole and hide there for the rest of my life.” At least he can manage a tense chuckle.  
  
As he stands there in his dad’s kitchen with a half-empty glass in hand, Levi cannot stop the absurdly wide smile spreading over his face. “I was thinking more along the lines of you buying me that coffee you promised earlier,” he intones, surprising even himself with how smooth he can be even though all he wants to do is thrash around like a sea lion on drugs.  
  
There’s a gasp on the other end once his words sink in. “R-really?” Eren asks, sounding both terrified and ecstatic at the same time.  
  
“Yes, really,” Levi says and nearly laughs as he slides back into the seat, heat flaring up somewhere in his chest. “We could try, at least.”  
  
“We could,” Eren agrees, still a bit shaky. “Yes. Great. If you’re sure about it.”  
  
“I should be the one asking you that,” Levi points out. He’s conveniently ignored the fact that he is still a professor and a grown-ass man. “It’s not illegal, though, I don’t think so.”  
  
“Okay, let’s hope so,” Eren replies, hesitating for a second or two. “Uh, how old are you by the way?”  
  
That question was bound to come up at some point, but Levi still feels a sense of dread creeping over him as he responds, “Thirty-four.”  
  
“Oh my God,” Eren groans, horrified. “I am so fucked up. Hope you’re not a psychology professor because there’s probably some Freudian shit going on here.”  
  
“Nope, English.” Trying to ease both himself and Eren, he assures, “But it’s not that bad. We can see what happens.”  
  
Just from the sound of his voice, Levi can tell that Eren’s wearing a smile identical to his. “Alright. We’ll do that.”  
  
When Levi gets off the phone and returns to party, he’s surprised to find it much less drunken than he’d expected. The infamous punch is practically untouched while the chocolate fountain seems the more popular choice. However, most of his relatives have gathered around in the piano room, and he can hear someone playing – rather awfully if you ask him.  
  
After he’s had some more chocolate, he goes to check out the pianist and finds out that it’s none other than Cat. He skitters across the keys towards Levi when he spots him and causes a rather harmonic progression of notes that earns him a small round of applause.  
  
“Whose idea was this?” Levi flicks at the black bow someone’s tied around Cat’s neck. Cat doesn’t appear bothered at all, of course, and even Levi has to admit that he looks sort of classy with it.  
  
The original owner of the bow remains unknown as no-one steps up, and even at the end of the evening, Cat’s still wearing it. Levi’s willing to write it off as a Christmas present, and while he thinks Cat may have preferred a toy or some kitty treats, who’s he to judge? It’s Christmas, after all.  
  
His dad does poke fun at him for the stupidly joyous look on his face, but Levi tells him it’s just Christmas cheer.  
  
“Sure,” his old man agrees with a wink, and while no other words are passed between them, Levi’s sure that somehow the bastard thinks his advice about balls helped.    
  
The next few days that follow are the longest of his life – partially due to wanting to see Eren already but mostly because of his noisy cousins that are also staying a couple of nights. Cat gets many new accessories during his time there, including a pair of antlers and some tiny slippers for his paws. He skitters across the floor with them in the same way a praying mantis fleeting its predator might skitter across a leaf and it cracks his younger cousins up.  
  
When Friday comes around, he’s up at six am and ready to go by seven. Isabel’s not even out of bed yet and Farlan’s dozing off by his morning coffee while Levi paces between the kitchen and living room in search of something to occupy his time with.  
  
“Calm the hell down,” Farlan grumbles at him from behind the newspaper at one point. “We’ll get going just as soon as everyone’s up, it’ll only take a while.”  
  
It takes several hours, which, to Levi, is an eternity. At long last, he’s squeezed into the backseat of Isabel’s car, Cat curled up on his shoulder and his mind on lovely green eyes.  
  
Isabel drives so, so slowly, almost as if she’s sensing Levi’s anxiety and purposefully screwing with him. Then again, it could also be because of the seven-year old clinging on to the back of her seat and blabbing on about the dollhouse she got from Santa.  
  
“It’s pink, and it has a secret basement full of secrets!” she whispers, and Levi glances at his watch for the tenth time during the hour. Time is passing by like a snail in a bowl of custard, inching forward in tiny fractions as it wallows in its own goo. Countless trees and roads and houses pass by outside the window, each meter and each second bringing him closer to Eren and the inevitably weird encounter that’ll occur.  
  
They take four bathrooms breaks during the ride, and that’s four too many for Levi. How come they got by with one on the way over but now it takes four? He stays put in the backseat on each four occasions, the thrumming at the back of his head growing louder as he chews on his lip in order to avoid throwing up his breakfast.  
  
You see, while he cannot wait to see Eren again, he’s also fucking terrified out of his mind.  
  
Finally, well into the afternoon, Isabel pulls up in front of his house and turns to glance at him. “Okay, we’re here,” she tells him, lips pursed in a knowing smile. “You can finally go and dig those ants out of your pants.”  
  
“I have no idea what you mean,” he claims, and to avoid further prying, quickly ducks out of the car.  
  
His house is in the exact same state he left it, the two coffee cups sitting in the sink reminding him of his last meeting with Eren. They’re like a bad omen, so one of the first things he does is wash them. Only after that does he unpack his suitcase and take care of anything else that needs to be taken care of.  
  
In the midst of settling in again, he digs his phone out from his pocket and, with wobbly fingers, sends a text to Eren.  
  
**Hey, I just got home, feel free to drop by whenever you have the time :-)**  
  
Again with the emoticons. It can’t be that Eren’s mannerisms are already rubbing off on him, they’ve barely even interacted – a fact that Levi’s hoping will change soon.  
  
As usual, Eren replies within mere minutes, and though it’s only a simple text message, it still makes Levi crack a smile.  
  
_yay!!hope u and cat had a great xmas:) ill be over in like half an hr tops, see u then!!  
_  
Knowing that Eren is just half an hour away from him doesn’t make it any easier for Levi to get the figurative ants out of his pants. It’s remarkable how much restless cleaning he’s able to do in the span of thirty minutes – he pays special attention to the living room, fluffing each pillow and straightening all the paintings on the walls. Cat watches him from his place on the couch like he’s gone mental, but soon enough settles in for a nice nap.  
  
When the doorbell rings just as Levi’s done picking lint off the rug, he gets up in such a haste that he bangs his knee on the coffee table. Cussing under his breath, he makes his way to the hallway and takes an excessively long while to scrutinize his reflection in the mirror.  
  
After one last moment spent gathering up all his courage and staring at the exquisite silhouette visible through the glass panes, he opens the door.  
  
“Hi,” Eren greets him with one of his wide smiles, cheeks red from more than just the chill. He thrusts forward the small box in his hands. “I brought you cookies.”  
  
“So you did,” Levi states. He’s left blinded by this bright, beautiful being otherwise known as Eren to the point that he doesn’t even know what to say, other than, “Would you like to come in?”  
  
There’s laughter hidden in Eren’s eyes as he responds, “I’d like that. I’d like that a lot.”


	2. extra

After he returns from lunch, he finds a stack of papers on his desk that hadn’t been there before. They look inconspicuous at first, sitting there like papers usually do, but Levi’s been around long enough to know that unprompted paperwork is never a good sign.  
  
On top of the stack is a pink post-it note, and while he immediately recognizes the handwriting as Hanji’s, reading through the words leaves him with more questions than answers.  
  
 _Epistemology and its Multi-Professional Applications is yours, Erwin had a little “accident”. Call him and agree on the lesson plan!_  
  
Underneath is a poorly-drawn stick figure with noodly arms and a frown on his face, the large eyebrows indicating that it’s supposed to be Erwin. Oh well, Hanji has never been much of an artist – what she is, though, is the fucking dean of their department, so Levi can’t do much else than pick up the phone and call Erwin.  
  
A quick glance through the papers reveals that the content of said course – Epistemology and its Multi-Professional Applications, that is _–_ is almost exactly the same as last year when he’d taught it to a class of mature students – internalism and externalism, various branches of epistemology and just a sprinkle of Descartes on top, even though Levi finds his ideas to be far too overrepresented. While it’s something Erwin’s much more enthusiastic about than him, Levi’s able to teach it just fine as well. He hopes so, at least.  
  
It takes six rings before Erwin picks up, sounding vaguely out of breath. “What were you doing?” Levi questions, both curious and grossed out at the thought of having interrupted his colleague in the middle of some private time.  
  
“Just putting on pants, the usual,” Erwin says and immediately goes on. “Because I got out of the shower a few minutes ago. Get your mind out of the gutter.”  
  
Thank goodness. “So you’re not doing epistemology this semester, then?” Levi asks as he plops down by his desk, papers in hand.  
  
“I’m not. Some unexpected issues have cropped up.” He waits for Erwin to continue, but when all he hears from the other end is the faint sound of fabric being rustled, Levi’s curiosity only grows.  
  
“What kind of issues? I hear that you had, uh, an accident,” Levi intones.  
  
Erwin’s apprehensive when he speaks up again. “Well, I broke my arms,” he admits, quick to move on. “It seems that I won’t be able to teach for a couple of… “  
  
“Wait, you broke your arms?” Levi interrupts, brows raised to high heavens. “Both of your arms?”  
  
“Both of my arms,” Erwin confirms, a little tired. “It was a skiing accident. But epistemology is easy, it’s pass/fail. I’ll just have to send you the lesson plan and list of students.”  
  
As soon as Levi gets a word in, he asks, “How are you holding the phone if both of your arms are broken?” Then, something even more important comes to his mind. “How do you wipe your ass?”  
  
“I have a headset,” Erwin replies, and then, in a slightly pained tone, “to answer your second question, with great difficulty.”  
  
For the next few minutes, Levi’s snickering too hard to carry a normal conversation. This prompts an exasperated sigh from Erwin, who, while irritated, does not sound surprised at all as he moves on to say something about the course material that’s missing from Levi’s stack. Even if some of it doesn’t completely stick to Levi’s memory, it probably doesn’t matter – Erwin agrees to e-mail him the couple of necessary documents. Just in time as well since the course starts off next week. Let’s not even go into how little patience Levi has for discussing the intricacies of the regress argument, and once Erwin starts explaining it to him in great detail, he decides it’s time for their little chat to end.  
  
In an effort to not make a complete ass out of himself, he spends a few afternoons catching up on epistemology and meta-epistemology. It’s just as dull as it sounds, but he tries to make the best of it. As a result of his revision, when Levi waltzes into the classroom next week he’s ready to kick ass and blow some minds.  
  
Every single seat is taken and as Levi glances over the mass of students he sees a few familiar faces here and there. One particular face, though, right smack in the middle of the front row makes alarm bells ring in his head. Well, the face isn’t the first thing he notices – the large yellow headband with bouncing bee antennas catches his attention before anything else, but as he adjusts his glance a little, he immediately recognizes their wearer.  
  
It’s little Miss Can-We-Ask-About-The-Cat, sitting there in all her kitsch glory, pen hovering over her notebook as her eyes follow Levi’s stride to the desk.  Her stare stops on his bag as if she’s expecting something to come tumbling out again. She looks almost disappointed when all Levi picks up from there is his calendar and lesson notes.  
  
“Weren’t we supposed to have Professor Smith for this course?” she pipes up at the precise same second Levi’s about to start talking.  
  
“You were,” he admits, “but he broke his arms and can’t teach, so I’m here instead.”  
  
“Both of his arms?” Miss Can-We-Ask-About-The-Cat inquires, antlers bobbing in a questioning manner.  
  
The mental image of Erwin sitting on the can with casts on both arms floats along through Levi’s head and his mouth twists into a squiggly line as he tries not to giggle out loud. “Both of them,” he confirms and quickly moves on to the actual topic at hand, which is introducing the course.  
  
For a while, everything seems to be going just fine. There’s no cats crawling out of his bag and no other disturbances, either, but for some reason Levi begins to feel uneasy, as if he’s being watched. And he is, of course, he’s the damn professor, but this time it’s different from the usual. He tries to shake it off as he pulls out the list of students and starts taking attendance.  
  
Once he’s gotten to the letter J, the first name there makes his stomach drop.  
  
 _Jaeger, Eren._  
  
Levi stares at those letters, mouth falling open slightly but no sound coming out. It can’t be. It cannot be. Seconds tick by and he realizes that he’s been silent for far too long already.  
  
Clearing his throat, he calls out, “Eren Jaeger.”  
  
From the left side of the classroom, a hand slowly rises up, and when Levi turns his head, he sees none other than Eren sitting there, beautiful emerald eyes wide and alarmed as they stare at each other.  
  
Levi’s first to break the contact as he remembers that there’s still more than twenty names to go. It couldn’t have been more than a few extra seconds that he spent gaping at Eren’s presence, nothing unusual, no-one noticed, and now he’ll just carry on as normal. Though he tries his best, he can see Eren continuing to stare at him from the corner of his eye as he goes on. The almost hungry look in his eyes doesn’t escape Levi’s notice.  
  
During the remainder of the class, he’s urgently aware of Eren watching his every move. They’ve been together for, what, a good few months now, but knowing that he’s being examined with such intensity still makes heat burst up from Levi’s chest and creep its way upwards.  
  
Aside from a bit of stuttering, Levi doesn’t screw up too badly even though Eren’s gaze continues to linger on him. He’s never been more relieved for class to end than now, slumping back in his chair as the students begin to gather their things and shuffle off to their next class. Eren’s lagging behind, and after remarking something to his friends who are already on their way to the door, saunters right up to Levi’s desk.  
  
“Do you have a moment, professor?” he asks, and while it’s an entirely normal question, it sounds all too sinful coming from Eren.  
  
Levi waits until the last few students have gone to speak up. “What are you doing here?” he asks, as it’s the first thing that had popped into his mind the moment he saw Eren.  
  
“Studying epistemology.” Eren takes a seat on the edge of his desk, all casual and carefree as if he wasn’t banging his teacher. “I know it doesn’t entirely relate to biochemistry, but it sounded like an interesting course.”  
  
“Is this…,” Levi begins, but then falters. “Yeah, no, this is definitely inappropriate.”  
  
Eren’s shoulders sag as he breathes out a little sigh. “I don’t know, it’s not that bad,” he counters, chewing on his bottom lip in a way that always makes Levi want to kiss him. “It’s just one course. Don’t look so worried. I promise I’ll be good.” There’s a teasing edge in his voice now and Levi can’t help but to roll his eyes.  
  
“You’re insufferable, you know that?” he remarks as he rubs at his temples. None of his training has prepared him for a situation like this, but then again, it sort of goes without saying that he probably shouldn’t have gotten involved with a student in the first place. “But seriously, is it okay for you? Being on a course taught by me?”  
  
“I don’t mind,” Eren replies, shrugging. A tiny smile rises to his lips as he goes on. “Who knows, it might be kind of fun. I heard all the students really like you.”  
  
“Okay,” Levi says, the tension in his features softening a little. “Okay. As long as you’re fine with it. I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”  
  
“I know that. You’re too sweet,” he hums, reaching out to brush his hand lightly over Levi’s. It’s just a tiny flutter at first, but Eren moves on to twine their fingers together and squeezes tight. “Of course I’m fine with it.” He sounds just as certain as he looks, a fleeting smile on his lips as he leans in closer.  
  
Though Eren doesn’t appear bothered, Levi’s apprehension isn’t completely gone yet. “It is a bit weird, don’t try to deny it,” he sighs.  
  
“I’m not,” Eren admits with a peculiar smile. “But I like it anyway.” He shuffles forward and presses his lips against Levi’s in a chaste kiss that sends his heart pounding wildly – they’re in a classroom, for fuck’s sake, just about anyone could walk in and see them.  
  
Before that happens, though, Eren pulls back, and to his horror, a little mewl of protest escapes from the back of Levi’s throat before he can stop it. Eren just smiles like he always does, bright-eyed and breezy as he gives Levi’s fingers one last squeeze before drawing back.  
  
“We’re still on for next weekend, right?” he asks, to which Levi gives a nod. Spending the weekend with Eren and Cat has become a sort of a routine for him, one that he always looks forward to.  
  
Before Eren goes, he gives Levi a lingering kiss, muttering against his lips once they part, “See you later, professor.” Off he goes, skipping along without a care in the world while Levi’s left trying to catch his breath.  
  
This kid is going to be his downfall, he’s sure of it.  
  
The rest of his week has decidedly less Eren in it, and while he could watch that lively face for an eternity, he supposes that less Eren in the classroom will only do his work morale good. The thought of teaching epistemology to Eren is an odd one, and it highlights the unfortunate fact that the two of them are a student and a professor, as much as he likes to skirt around the issue.  
  
However, by now he’s learned to read Eren and all the subtle little details in his expression, and as far as Levi could tell, he truly hadn’t appeared bothered at all. A bit surprised, yes, but that’s a given when finding out that your boyfriend is going to be teaching you for the next few months.  
  
That’s what they are, by the way. Boyfriends. Just thinking of that word makes Levi feel giddy. He and pretty Eren are officially a thing, have been for quite a while now, but he still struggles to comprehend it sometimes. With every little kiss and touch and warm glance, Eren’s stealing away more pieces of his heart and he’s so, so fucked because he wouldn’t have it any other way.  
  
Now that they’re boyfriends, they also do boyfriend things together – like going out for dinner, watching dumb movies while snuggled under a pile of blankets and more. Loads more, in fact, and by that he means naked things. Together. He and Eren, being naked. If he thinks of that scenario for too long he fears that his mind may collapse on itself, but nevertheless, it’s a thing that happens, and quite often, at that. Eren’s a horny college kid so Levi wouldn’t have expected anything else, but there are times when he’s left speechless by Eren’s unbelievable stamina. However, he seems to enjoy cuddles just as much as the actual deed, and Levi can’t complain, either – it’s nice to wake up on cold spring mornings wrapped up with Eren who gives off heat like a literal furnace.  
  
That’s how their weekends together usually go. There might be an occasional day or two during the week when see each other as well, but those days are few and far in between. Especially now that Levi’s stuck teaching Erwin’s boring-ass course, his schedule just got even more packed. It’s not the teaching itself that takes up so much time, but all the preparations for it and the assignments to grade and students to advice. As such, he can do most of that work in other places than his office on the campus – in fact, Hanji’s a huge proponent for flexibility in the workplace, so she gleefully allows Levi to mark down his last hours on Friday afternoon as working from home.  
  
It just so happens that Eren’s last class that Friday ends in the afternoon as well. What a coincidence.  
  
He picks Eren up from in front of the library, slouching so low that he can barely see over the steering wheel as his eyes dart around the parking lot. It’s fairly empty since it’s a Friday, and before he can begin to worry about the couple of bookworms passing by his car on their way to the main door, he spots Eren descending the steps. When he hops into the passenger’s seat he looks over at Levi like he’s grown a second head.  
  
“What on Earth are you doing?” Eren asks, disbelief in his voice. Levi responds with a loud shush, rising up only after he’s driven them out of the parking lot.  
  
“Someone might see,” he explains as he tries to chase off the guilt that’s no doubt written all over his face.  
  
“You’re being ridiculous,” Eren huffs. He leans over to plant a wet kiss on his cheek, the scent of his chewing gum lingering in Levi’s nose. “No-one will see, and even if they do, so what?”  
  
Levi has a million different retorts ready for that and apparently Eren can read that from his face since he completely disregards any notion of road safety and kisses him for the second time, this time on the lips. While it does make Levi forget about his next argument, he also nearly takes a wrong turn at the traffic lights.  
  
The smile tugging at Eren’s lips is sly and full of promise as he says, “Don’t worry, I’ll get you to loosen up sooner or later.”  
  
Before any of that, though, Levi still has work to do. He informs Eren of this once they’ve gotten through the door, and even if Eren grumbles a little, he lets Levi get settled on the couch with the pile of essays he has to grade through.  
  
From the direction of the kitchen, Levi can hear Eren moving around and making himself something to eat while cooing at Cat who’d rushed over to him as soon as they’d gotten inside. Despite of Eren’s claims that he’d gladly arrange Cat to stay with someone else, Levi had not agreed – while he would never admit it out loud, he’s gotten quite fond of Cat and his odd habit of chewing at everything. Besides, Cat’s already gotten settled here, and they’ve established several times that Levi and Eren are not just friends, they’re _boy_ friends.  
  
Inspired by the wonderful example Levi’s setting for once, Eren eventually sits down next to him with his textbook and notes. There’s only a few words exchanged between them, but just having Eren next to him seems to ease his mind somehow.  
  
That’s how it always starts out with Eren sitting on the couch and biting at the nail of his thumb as he reads. It’s only a matter of time until he’ll start dripping lower, so when Levi looks up from his work an hour or two later, he’s not surprised to see Eren on the floor by his feet, head resting against his knee and immersed in biochemistry.  
  
During the first few times it had occurred, Levi had promptly told him to get back up  However, by now he’s gotten used to it, and the look of contentment that slowly settles over Eren’s face is enough to ward off any doubts.  
  
If he asks Eren about it, usually he’ll receive a shrug in response, since it seems that even Eren himself isn’t entirely sure why he tends to drift to the floor.  
  
“It’s just really nice,” he’ll say, tracing circles in to the skin of Levi’s ankle. “Calming. Makes it go really quiet up here for once.” He’ll tap at his temples before nudging at Levi in a silent request to keep stroking through his hair.  
  
Oh, that’s another theme that tends to pop up quite often. Even now Levi’s carding his fingers through the soft strands of Eren’s hair while he reads through a particularly well-worded paragraph about Steinbeck. It is kind of calming, he has to admit, though probably not in the exact same way that it is for Eren.  
  
Something wet flicking across his knuckles darts Levi right out of his pleasant haze. The essay he’d been reading falls from his hand as he jerks back on a reflex.  
  
Eren’s the picture of innocence as he sits there with one leg crossed over the other, mouthing at the fingers that had been previously tangled in his hair like it’s no big deal.  
  
“What are you doing?” Levi forces out, his throat going dry at the sight in front of him.     
  
Eren glances at him from between his lashes, and it’s so damn obvious that the little shit knows exactly what he’s doing. “I’m bored,” he complains, dragging out each syllable. “Don’t you feel like taking a break with me?”  
  
“Not really, no.” The essays won’t grade themselves, so he turns right back to them and leaves Eren to find amusement elsewhere. Levi’s tempted, yes, but he’s also very, very old and boring, at least when compared to Eren.  
  
He’s only read a few more sentences when he feels a hand ghosting its way up his thigh and that’s too much distraction even for someone as old and boring as him.  
  
“Eren,” Levi intones as gently as he possibly can while still remaining firm. “I’m working.”  
  
“Aren’t you done yet?” Eren groans in response.  
  
“No, I’m not.” He waves around the stack of papers he has yet to read. With a glance towards Eren’s notes that now lay abandoned on the side, he asks, “Are you done?”  
  
The fleeting look of hesitance on Eren’s face is enough to answer that. “Um, not exactly,” he replies, quick to brush it off as he takes on a more sultry tone. “But it’s important to take breaks regularly, right, professor?”  
  
It takes considerable effort on Levi’s part not to make a face at the title. “Yes, but it’s also important to study,” he says as he tries to ignore Eren’s hand that’s still resting dangerously close to his crotch. “How far along are you?”  
  
Eren glances back towards his scattered notes with an absent shrug. “Just this chapter and then after that the next section.” Judging from how he’s scrawled the margins full of little stick figures he’s had enough of studying for tonight.  
  
Unfortunately, the pile of essays isn’t something that Levi can just put aside unless he wants to receive dozens of whiny emails from his students for not giving them back on time. With a glance towards the clock on the wall, he lets out a little sigh.  
  
“In that case, I think you should do some more studying,” Levi announces, but before Eren has the chance to protest, leans over to hover just centimeters from Eren’s face, breath fanning out over his lip as he murmurs, “Half an hour. Do you think you could be a good boy for me and study really well for half an hour more?”  
  
And those are the magic words – he sees Eren’s pupils go wide with desire as he presses up closer against Levi’s leg. “I could, maybe,” he says, lips curling into a smile, “and after that?”  
  
Stroking a thumb over the tan skin of Eren’s cheek, Levi promises in a hushed tone, “After that, if you’re really good, you’ll get a reward.” At the mention of a reward, Eren’s whole face lights up.  
  
“What kind of a reward?” he inquires, playful interest in his voice.  
  
“You’ll have to find that out for yourself.” Levi draws back just in time to catch the slight pout that lingers on Eren’s face for a few brief moments. “How about it? Half an hour.”  
  
It only takes a second for Eren to make up his mind. “Okay,” he agrees, eyeing Levi with such unashamed adoration that he almost wants to disregard the half an hour and reward Eren just for being here with him. “Half an hour.”  
  
Letting out a small hum of approval, Levi tugs at his hair, not so hard that it hurts but enough to get Eren’s mind back to the task at hand. “Get to it, then. I’ll let you know when the time is up.” Of course, he’s sure that Eren will be counting the minutes, himself – even now when he picks up his textbook from where he’d discarded it his posture is all too rigid to be something that comes naturally for him.  
  
Levi goes back to marking essays, and now that there are no suggestive touches going on down below, he actually makes some progress. All the while the fingers of his other hand are stroking through Eren’s hair in absent motions, and if he happens to slow down too much, Eren will soon remind him by nudging his head against his knee.  
  
To Levi’s surprise, his students don’t seem to have fucked up that badly this time. Granted, one essay continues to mix up the protagonists from East of Eden and The Grapes of Wrath, but other than that, he hasn’t yet spotted any major mistakes in any of the papers he’s read through so far. There’s several left, still, so maybe the worst ones are waiting for him at the very bottom of the pile.  
  
Though most of his focus is on the lines of text in front of him, at the same time he’s acutely aware of the warmth against his leg and the feel of silky hair between his fingers. It all registers to him even as he reads, every single detail reminding just how much he’s longed for this without even being aware of it.  
  
Minutes tick by as Levi wades through paragraphs upon long-winded paragraphs. It does turn out that the worst essays are near the bottom of the stack – one paper claims that the antagonist in Camus’ The Stranger had been the main character himself, to which Levi reacts by rolling his eyes and drawing a red line under the sentence. Before he has the chance to delve further into this idiocy his fingers slip away from the soft hair as Eren whirls around to look at him.  
  
“It’s been half an hour,” he announces, eyeing Levi like he’s ready to eat him. A quick glance at the clock reveals that Eren’s right, so with little regret, he sets aside the few essays he has left.  
  
“Did you study?” Levi asks. His hand falls down on its own accord to fiddle with the necklace hanging around Eren’s neck. “And I mean really study, not just sit there.”  
  
Eren mouth twists downwards in a frown as he shows off his best kicked puppy-look. “Of course I did,” he huffs, thrusting his notes at Levi. They’re full of chemical formulas and long words Levi can’t even pronounce. “Look, I studied loads.”  
  
“So you did,” he comments with an appreciative nod. He has no idea what a Dogiel cell is but Eren’s drawn a highly detailed cross-section of it.  
  
“Do I get a reward now?” Eren questions, his voice taking on a purr as he clings on to Levi’s leg with both hands, and he’s been so patient and obedient that it would be downright cruel of Levi to deny him. He abandons playing with Eren’s necklace and instead comes to lightly tilt his head up, those emerald eyes large and expectant as Levi gazes into them.  
  
“Of course you do,” Levi murmurs as he leans over Eren, lips hovering just over his. He strokes lightly over the side of Eren’s neck, taking close notice of how it causes Eren to shiver in contentment. “You did just as I told you, what a good boy you are.”  
  
In one smooth move, he closes the short distance between them and captures Eren’s lips in a slow kiss. He can feel Eren’s grip on his leg tighten as he tries to shuffle even closer, tiny noises rising up from his throat that Levi’s quick to swallow up. His tongue sweeps over Eren’s in lazy motions, and once he’s coaxed Eren’s mouth to open wider, sucks at gently at his tongue as he deepens the kiss. Eren’s tense with wanting as Levi brushes his fingers down along his neck again, muscles stiff and straining under delicate tan skin.  
  
Reluctantly, Levi draws back to take in Eren’s lightly flushed face and the demanding look that comes over his features, and all he can think about is how much he adores every single thing about this unbelievable creature who has him so whipped that he can’t even believe it.  
  
“I hope that wasn’t it,” Eren’s voice breathing out breaks through his daydreams. Teasing hands flutter up his thighs and move to undo his belt as Eren settles between his legs. “Since I’m down here already, how you give me a little treat?”  
  
It’s so wrong, but hearing him speak like that while he’s kneeling between Levi’s legs and staring at him with those gorgeous eyes like he’s the only thing that matters in the world makes both Levi’s heart and cock swell.  
  
“No, no, come up here,” he protests, seizing Eren by the wrists and tugging at him to get up. While Eren looks breathtaking in his current position, all that Levi can hold on to is his hair. Now, as he pulls Eren into his lap, lags braced on both sides of his thighs and arms resting on his shoulders, he can feel all of Eren’s body inclining towards his, responding to every little touch along the curve of his back. Levi’s hands come to rest over Eren’s spread thighs as he whispers into the crook of his neck, “Isn’t this much better?”  
  
“Yeah, this is nice,” Eren agrees with a grin as he rubs against the bulge in Levi’s pants. “Much more fun than reading essays about…” Leaning to the side, he snatches the couple of papers Levi hasn’t corrected yet. “About the existential literature?”  
  
“Oh, I don’t know,” Levi remarks, watching Eren flip through the essays absently. “I find the dualism in an individual’s experiences of the world quite interesting, especially when contrasted with the typical writing conventions of the literature of the absurd.”  
  
That prompts a laugh from Eren, the sound flowing and pleasant to Levi’s ears. “Ooh, talk literature to me, professor,” he intones in a mischievous voice, but the actual words make Levi grimace.  
  
“Yes, thank you for reminding me of that,” he sighs, unable to hold Eren’s amused gaze as he traces along the seams of his jeans. “I’m the creepiest professor ever.” It’s a discussion they’ve had numerous times and will most likely have in the future as well, since even though it’s been a few months, Levi cannot get over the fact that he’s banging a student.  
  
No, actually, banging a student wouldn’t be that bad, but in his case, he’s hopelessly in love with a student, and that’s an entire different level of fucked.  
  
As he’s found out already, it doesn’t seem to bother Eren as much as it bothers him. “You worry about things too much,” Eren tells him with an admonishing look. He brushes through Levi’s hair with his fingers, lidded emerald eyes locking with his as he murmurs, “You love me, don’t you? And you’d do anything to make me happy?”  
  
Levi doesn’t even have to think about the answer. “Of course.”    
  
“Good.” Eren looks so pleased with himself as he runs his fingertips over his undercut repeatedly. “It would make me very happy if you didn’t worry so much.” His voice is gentle and warm, and when coupled with the look of open adoration in his eyes, it makes Levi want to never let him go.  
  
“I’m old,” he states, and it’s the lamest rebuttal he’s ever delivered, so he’s compelled to go on. “Old people worry a lot.”  
  
“You’re not that old,” Eren declares. “Besides, I like older men.”  
  
It takes both of them a few moments to realize what he’d just said, but soon there’s a light flush spreading over Eren’s face. “You like older men?” Levi questions with a raised brow. “Why?”  
  
“Well, by that I mean that I like you, specifically.” Even through his embarrassment, Eren manages a toothy grin. “And besides, have you seen what college guys are like? Ew, no thanks.”  
  
His stomach fluttering in the most peculiar way, Levi wraps his arms around Eren, a stupid smile pulling at his lips. “You like me,” he repeats, stroking at Eren’s back.  
  
He gets a chuckle in response. “Wow, what an insightful observation, professor.” It’s as if Eren can read his thoughts, because he goes on to ask, “Can I call you professor?”  
  
On one hand, Levi still feels creepy as fuck, but on the other, he’d be lying if he claimed that Eren’s breathy voice whispering that into his ear doesn’t have any effect on him. “You can call me anything you want,” he promises without a second thought.  
  
"Can I call you daddy? Or sir?" On the surface, his tone is light, but Levi recognizes the subtle apprehension in how Eren’s voice hitches up by just a fraction.  
  
"Anything," he replies in a hoarse whisper and feels Eren’s shoulders relax under his palms.  
  
“Oh, babe, you’re too good to be true,” Eren mumbles into his neck, pressing kisses all the way down to the neckline of his shirt, earnest hands venturing to pull at his belt.  
  
Levi doesn’t know what to say to that, especially since he has to admit that his motives aren’t entirely selfless – as much as he’d like to deny it, his pulse starts racing at the thought of Eren moaning out something like that while being wrecked with pleasure.  
  
Since he’s a man of action rather than words, he draws Eren in for a careful kiss, feeling that soft mouth open up easily under his. All of him is warm in Levi’s arms, the heat from where their bodies are touching seeping to his very core as he allows himself to get lost in the dizzying bliss that Eren’s tongue running over his teeth causes.  
  
They’re both out of breath when they part, Eren’s mouth caught half-open so enticingly that it’s hard for Levi to resist just kissing him again.  
  
“Reward?” Eren reminds him with a hopeful expression, and of course Levi can only cave in.  
  
“Lube and condoms are in the bedroom, though,” he says with a jerk of his head in the aforementioned direction, but before he can go on, Eren’s already shuffling up and clambering over the back of the couch.  
  
He ruffles Levi’s hair as he goes to retrieve the lube and condoms, calling out after him, “Don’t get started without me, I want all of my reward.” While Eren’s rummaging through the drawers in the other room, he adds in as an afterthought, “And by reward I’m talking about your dick.”  
  
It’s probably good that Eren can’t see him at the moment, because his face is twisting into an expression that must look like he’s choking. “Thanks for that clarification, I would’ve never guessed,” he quips before a short chuckle erupts from his mouth.  
  
Eren comes back soon enough, lube and condoms clutched in his hand. Levi takes a moment to admire the sight in front of him, gaze roaming over the shapely calves and long legs, then up all the way along the lightly muscled torso that’s hidden by one of Eren’s nerdy t-shirts. There’s some obscure math joke on it that Levi doesn’t even want to understand – to be honest, he’s much more interested in what lies underneath.  
  
As Eren moves to make his earlier place in his lap, Levi stops him with a wave of his hand. His hungry stare flits up to Eren’s face in order to scope out his reaction.  
  
“Take your clothes off,” Levi orders, a hint of feverish impatience in his smirk as he watches Eren swallow heavily once the meaning behind the words dawns on him.  
  
“Uh, like this? In front of you?” he asks with an unreadable expression that could best be described as a mixture of apprehension, bewilderment and confusion. A steady flush is creeping its way up his neck as he tosses the lube and condoms to Levi.  
  
“Yeah, in front of me,” he replies with a tilt of his head, eyeing Eren from top to bottom, starting from his wispy tufts of hair and ending with the mismatched socks on his feet. “I like inspecting what’s mine.” To his own ears, it sounds like a line straight out of a cliché romance novel, but it seems to work on Eren – he runs his tongue over his bottom lip briefly, sizing Levi up with equal intensity.  
  
“As you wish, then.” Eren shifts on his feet, his hands a little awkward when he undoes his belt. “I hope you’re not expecting a professional striptease because you’d probably have to pay me for that,” he intones. It’s clearly meant as a joke, but Levi wouldn’t say no to slipping a few bills into his underwear. As Eren steps out of his jeans and slowly pulls the shirt over his head, Levi rakes his eyes over the flawless tan skin being revealed. There’s a sizeable bulge at the front of Eren’s striped boxers, and though he tries to hunch over a little, it doesn’t do much in terms of turning the attention away from his obvious arousal.  
  
“Good boy, Eren,” Levi speaks out in a reassuring voice and something in Eren’s face unravels at that. “Look at you, so gorgeous. Come here.” He reaches out to tug at the waistband of his boxers and Eren follows suit, a tiny sigh escaping him as Levi kisses at his navel, hands rubbing over his hips and occasionally dipping lower to grasp at the enticing flesh of his ass.  
  
Before he knows it he has Eren in his lap again, tugging off his pants with eager hands. It’s quite an accomplishment since he’s doing it while sitting on top of Levi, and despite a little grumbling, manages to rid him of his pants.  
  
While he’s undoing the buttons of Levi’s shirt and trailing his lips down along his neck, he mutters, “You think I’m gorgeous?” He sounds mostly fond and playful but Levi thinks he can hear uncertainty in his words as well.    
  
“Have you seen yourself lately?” Levi retorts, fingers coming up to comb through Eren’s hair. Gorgeous is an understatement, if anything – not to mention all the infinite kindness and joy and generosity that come neatly wrapped up in the lovely package of emerald eyes and honeyed skin. “You are the most exquisite thing I’ve ever laid eyes on.”  
  
Eren responds with a low hum, his face hidden in the crook of Levi’s neck as he strokes over the defined muscles of his stomach with fluttering touches. “I’m not, though,” he tries to claim, but Levi can feel him smiling against his skin, his voice laced with enjoyment.  
  
To stress his point, he runs his fingers lightly over Eren’s sides, causing him to squirm as a bout of laughter pours out of him. “You are, though,” Levi states firmly. “It makes me so happy every time I see you, it’s gross.” He’s glad he can’t see his own expression, because he’s sure that the smile on his face looks just as goofy as the one on Eren’s at the moment.  
  
“Well, I don’t know about that,” Eren replies, stretching out each word lazily. His tongue flicks out to lick across Levi’s collarbone, gentle at first, but once Levi’s hand slips down into his underwear and comes to wrap around the base of his cock, he all but bites down at his neck.  
  
“Of course you wouldn’t, since you’re so damn modest all the time,” Levi scoffs, searching fingers stroking up his shaft. With his other hand, he pulls at Eren’s hair just firmly enough to get him to draw back, emerald eyes locking with his. Lips brushing against Eren’s, he mutters, “You’re stunning, you hear me?”  
  
When all he gets in response is a quiet hum, Levi drags his thumb across the underside of Eren’s cock, coming to press down lightly at the sensitive head and making Eren’s breath hitch.  
  
“What do we say to compliments, Eren?” he questions, voice like dark velvet as he moves his thumb in slow circles, feeling sticky precome coat his fingers.  
  
For a moment or two Eren gapes at him like he’d just asked him about the meaning of life. The blush on his face only deepens when he suggests hesitantly, “Uh, thank you?”  
  
It’s an adequate answer, but there’s always room for improvement. “And?” Levi asks, giving his cock only a dainty stroke.  
  
Shifting forward in his lap in search for more pressure on his straining erection, Eren’s brows furrow as he struggles to find what’s supposedly missing. “Thank you, daddy?” he tries out, breathy and flushed, and Levi finds out that that’s exactly what he wanted to hear because _damn_ does that word sound good when it’s muttered in such a coy tone.  
  
“That’s my good boy,” he purrs, catching Eren’s bottom lip between his teeth as he brush along the entire length of his cock. The moan that pours from Eren’s mouth flows right into his as he kisses Eren, greedy and thorough. He tastes faintly of spearmint chewing gum and youthful passion as Levi sucks his tongue deeper into his mouth, all the while continuing to stroke his arousal with soothing motions that are nowhere near enough to get him off.  
  
The only reason he draws back is because his head’s spinning from the lack of oxygen, or perhaps from just having Eren so exposed in his arms. “Please,” Eren whines, unusually high-pitched as he angles his hips forward. “Please, fuck, more.”  
  
“More of what?” Levi asks, carefully arranging a look of mock innocence on his face as if he has no idea what Eren wants more of. He reaches down to run a finger along his balls, making Eren shiver a little.  
  
“You fucking asshole,” he groans out, head lolling back. Eren’s about to go on but Levi cuts him off with a firm squeeze at his cock.  
  
“That’s not a very nice name to call someone, is it, Eren?” Levi drawls with a vaguely threatening tone, but his credibility is somewhat ruined by the smile rising to his face. Eren’s squirming in his lap, his eyes lidded as he attempts to get Levi to touch him more. “You wanna try again?”   
  
Of course he does, Levi can tell from the way he’s nearly quivering with want. “Please,” Eren repeats shakily, “please, fuck, do something.”  
  
“I’m already doing something,” Levi points out as he runs his fingers up the shaft and then down again, feeling it twitch under his touch. “You’ll have to be more specific, darling.”  
  
Eren’s hands clench and unclench at his hair, the frustration rolling off of him as he shifts in Levi’s lap. “Something, just, touch me, put it in me, whatever,” he grinds out.  
  
“Put what in you? Specifics, Eren.” By now he has to clamp his mouth shut to stop himself from laughing at the indignant look that rises to Eren’s features.  
  
The arms wrapped around his neck tighten as Eren lets out a low moan, his eyes falling shut. “Put your dick in me,” he hisses out from between clenched teeth, a deep shade of crimson coming to color his cheeks. “Like, right now. There, are you happy now?”  
  
Levi rewards him with a light kiss on his nose. “I’m always happy when I’m with you,” he whispers. Eren tenses under his touch as he moves to palm his ass with one hand while reaching for the lube with the other one. “You’re so good for me, Eren, so lovely and sweet.”  
  
The sound of Eren’s laugh rings in his ears, a melody he doesn’t ever want to forget as he pops the cap open and pours a generous amount of lube on to his palm. “You’re a total sap,” Eren breathes out, his eyes so full of affection that Levi cannot help but to kiss him right on the mouth.  
  
His tongue probing at the inside of Eren’s cheek is just enough to draw his attention away from Levi slipping a lubed finger between his cheeks. Once he rubs over his hole, however, Eren jerks up and mewls into his mouth with eagerness  
  
“About damn time,” he wheezes as he tries to push back against the digit, but Levi’s not about to let him off the hook so easily.  
  
“Are we going to have to have a discussion about your bad language?” he questions, moving to steady Eren by his hips while his other hand’s still lingering over the crack of his ass.  
  
“Are we going to have to have a discussion about your dick in my ass?” Eren retorts, some of the sarcastic edge losing its effect when a whimper leaves him as Levi pressed down at the ring of the muscle. He tries to rut against Levi’s thigh but is kept firmly in place by Levi’s hold on his hip.  
  
“Maybe we are,” he states with a grin. While his own erection is straining painfully hard against the fabric of his boxers, he can never resist an opportunity to tease his boyfriend a little. As Levi grazes his lips along his jaw, he mutters with a hint of demand in his voice, “How about you start off by cleaning up that dirty mouth of yours and asking nicely?”  
  
The sound that Eren makes in response is one of pure frustration but there’s a bashful smile playing across his features. His fingers stroke over Levis undercut in shaky little motions that send warm shivers all the day down his spine. “I’m sorry, daddy,” Eren breathes out with a sly glance from between his lashes and Levi cannot stop the groan that falls from his mouth, hips jerking up to meet Eren’s crotch. Three words are all it takes to remind him that he’s so fucking infatuated with pretty Eren. “I’ll be good for you, I swear, it’s just that I really need you inside of me.”  
  
Levi sucks in a breath to avoid exploding in his boxers right there and then. By now he’s already noticed that Eren knows exactly what buttons to push to get him going. Both hands moving to grasp at Eren’s ass, he replies in a throaty voice, “I know, baby, you’re always so good for me, but you get a little impatient at times.” He circles at Eren’s hole, nudging in just the tip of his index finger. The strained noise that tumbles from Eren’s swollen lips is filled with need. “You’re just too irresistible like this, I love watching you squirm.” He bites at Eren’s ear lightly, tongue darting out to soothe over the indents. “But I promise, I’ll make you feel really good soon, okay, darling?”  
  
With his hands grasping on to Levi’s hair, Eren lets out a quiet hum. “Okay,” he agrees. Maybe it’s the dim lights in the living room or their close proximity, but his face looks much more unguarded than earlier, and maybe even a little shy all of the sudden, never mind the fact that Levi’s finger is halfway up his ass. “You make me feel good all the time, though, even if you’re just holding my hand or kissing me and stuff.”  
  
They’re both mostly naked and sporting huge boners but all Levi feels like doing at that moment is holding Eren in his arms and stroking his hair and smushing his stupidly cute face. It’s completely beyond him how the kid can spew out the verbal equivalent of pink cotton candy while moments away from being fucked, but then again, Levi’s sure he’ll never grow tired of hearing Eren confess his affection for him.  
  
With all the blood in his brain having gone on vacation down south, Levi can’t be bothered with thinking up a retort and instead kisses him with all the fervor he can muster. Eren matches it with equal intensity, and as Levi slides his finger all the way in, he can feel more than hear the small moan Eren gives out.  
  
Stroking over his walls in slow, teasingly shallow motions, Levi mumbles against his lips, “Is that better, darling?”  
  
He can see the gears turning in Eren’s head as he tries to find the response that’ll result in a dick in his ass as soon as possible, the conniving little fox. Before he gets the chance to give any kind of an answer, Levi presses down on the small bundle of nerves inside him and all that comes out from Eren’s mouth is a garbled moan. He arches further into Levi’s embrace, hands grasping on to his hair and tugging, pulling at the strands so hard that Levi’s scalp tingles, but he doesn’t even mind because his eyes are fixed on the look of pure euphoria on Eren’s face.  
  
“Levi,” he calls out in a choked whisper.  
  
“I’m right here, babe,” Levi assures him, a second lubed fingers brushing over his entrance. With his arm winding around Eren’s wait, he can feel desire thrumming up from under his skin, angling his hips as he bears down on the single digit inside of him. “Look at you, so wrecked already.” Nudging Eren with his head in a tiny encouraging motion, he gives a vague nod downwards. “You can touch yourself if you want to.”  
  
“I want to touch you,” Eren blurts out, hands skittering lower and lower until he’s trailing a light finger over the outline of Levi’s cock prominently displayed against the gray cotton of his boxers. A faint red shade is tinging his cheeks, and when combined with the reverently pleading glance Eren’s giving him, the urge to smush his face and pepper it with chaste kisses only grows stronger.  
  
He strokes along Eren’s back as he leans forward to peck at the corner of his mouth. “Of course, darling, you can do anything you want,” he vows, and when Eren smiles at him with warmth in his eyes Levi swears that he’s going to die right there and then from how all-consumingly he adores this literal angel who’s somehow agreed to be his.  
  
While Eren’s pulling down his underwear to free his erection, Levi skims his lips over his jawline, pausing by his ear to mutter, “You’re always so thoughtful and attentive, it’s the cutest thing ever.”  
  
Eren sighs into his hair, giving his cock a modest stroke. “Really?” he wonders, and while it sounds casual, Levi’s indulged him enough in the past to recognize it as a subtle plea for more praises.  
  
“God, yes,” Levi breathes out, the calm movement of Eren’s hand over his length clouding his ability to articulate properly. “You’re far too adorable for your own good and you know just how to use it to drive me crazy.”  
  
“Me?” Eren’s voice is full of amusement as he rubs over the protruding vein along Levi’s shaft, pausing just before he reaches the sensitive head. “Well, I would never.”  
  
“You would. But it’s okay, I like it.” He slips in the second finger that’s been teasing at Eren’s hole, and though it’s a tight fit, all Eren does is give out a pleased moan. “I like all of you all the time, you’re perfect, Eren, you’re so good for me.”  
  
“Oh my God, yes, please,” Eren hisses, and though his face is hidden in Levi’s shoulder, he can see the flush that’s spreading all the way up to his ears. His grip on Levi’s cock has tightened by just a fraction but he continues to work his hand over it in slow, purposeful strokes.  
  
A self-assured smile lingers on Levi’s face as he exclaims, “I’ve told you already, Eren, if you want something you’ll have to be more specific.”  
  
Teeth just barely scraping at Levi’s skin, Eren groans like he’s about to snap at him, and when Levi tugs at his hair, draws back with a jerk. “Please,” he repeats, eyes brimming with such honest, unconcealed yearning that it takes all of Levi’s willpower not to give in right at that moment.  
  
“Please what?” he inquires instead with a raised brow. He presses down against Eren’s prostate, taking care to spread out his fingers in order to stretch him properly. “Be specific.”  
  
Along with the beautifully frustrated expression gracing his features, there’s also a curious glint in Eren’s eye as he grinds down against Levi’s fingers. “Please fuck me, daddy,” he purrs, only appearing more pleased when Levi sucks in a sharp breath, his hold on Eren’s hair tightening. “I really need your cock in me, you always fill me up so perfectly.”  
  
“For fuck’s sake, Eren.” In a desperate attempt to hold on to the last remaining threads of his self-control, Levi squeezes his eyes shut, head falling back. “If you’re going to keep saying things like that you better be prepared for a pounding of a lifetime.”  
  
“I’m all about that,” Eren hums as he presses kisses along his neck, the light flutter of his lips on Levi’s skin like a dozen little petals. He’s moving himself on the two fingers inside of him, grinding his hips down in slow circles. “I just can’t help it, daddy, you take such good care of me all the time. In fact, you’ve spoiled me rotten with all your sweetness.” He sounds fond and only mildly accusing.  
  
“That’s because sweetness is all you deserve.” Levi moves to brush his lips against Eren’s forehead while his fingers continue to work at his hole, gently opening him up. “Such a good boy, Eren, so wonderful and charming and clever. I’ll always do my best to take care of you.”  
  
Eren nearly sobs at that, hand falling loose around Levi’s cock. ”Yes, please,” he whispers, broken in the best of ways. “Please put it in me, I want to feel you closer, _please_ , daddy, I need it.”  
  
Trailing soothing kisses along the side of his face, Levi reaches for the condoms, carefully brushing Eren’s hand away. “It’s okay, darling, I know,” he rambles as he tears the packet open. “I know, me too. Just relax, it’s alright.”  
  
A shiver goes through Eren as the fingers in his ass retreat and settle to caress over his hips instead. Once Levi’s coated his cock with plenty of lube _(he’d never want to hurt Eren, his gorgeous, sunny Eren, never wants to see those dazzling emerald eyes fill with tears unless it’s from uncontrollable joy),_ he shifts around to position the head at Eren’s hole.  
  
Levi brings the hand that’s not steadying Eren by his hips to card through his hair, soft brown strands passing through his fingers like silk. “You’re a good boy, Eren,” he reminds once more because it bears repeating, and if Eren’s flushed cheeks and dark eyes are any indicator, he doesn’t mind the repetition either. “You’re my good boy, and I love you so, so much.” His voice falls into a mangled whisper as he pushes the tip inside by just a tiny fraction, feeling Eren clench against him.  
  
His nails digging into Levi’s shoulders as he holds on, Eren replies in a shaky voice, “I love you too, love you more than anything, God, just fuck me.”  
  
Desperation sounds good on him, but Levi’s tired of waiting as well. Very slowly, and while brushing through Eren’s hair and muttering encouragements into his ear, he sinks his cock into the tight heat of his ass.  
  
Though it would be easy to lose himself in that moment, he takes care to observe Eren’s reaction as he goes in. He’s tense and unmoving in Levi’s lap, his chest heaving a little as he takes a few slow breaths, but relaxes soon enough as Levi moves to trace abstract patterns along his back.  
  
“Fuck, it’s really tight,” Eren sighs, more pleased than in pain, and Levi has to agree. He wants to thrust up deeper into the warm heat of his ass, but he can’t, isn’t allowed, because his precious Eren is still too tense for that.   
  
“Just relax, darling,” Levi tells him, caressing over his buttocks with loving touches. He presses their bodies flush together as close as they can get, tugging Eren in for a kiss. Once they part, he breathes against his lips, “You’re doing so well, my beautiful boy, I’m so proud of you.”  
  
Gradually, as he continues muttering quiet compliments to Eren, and rubbing his hands over his back and threading his fingers into his hair, he feels Eren relax around him. It doesn’t take long for him to latch on to Levi’s neck, sucking small hickeys there as he gives an experimental roll of his hips.  
  
“Fuck, that’s perfect,” Eren calls out, his eyes falling closed. The sensation of Eren’s walls bearing down on his cock is indescribable, and as Levi dips his fingers down between his cheeks, he can feel where they’re joined together, rubbing over the stretched rim of Eren’s hole. He can feel the movements of his cock inside Eren as he thrusts upwards, can feel Eren clenching and unclenching around him from the outside as well as he runs his thumb over the swollen ring of muscle. All it takes is a tiny bit of pressure on it to send Eren into frantic spasms, his back arching and a long, low whine erupting from his mouth.  
  
“Look at you, taking me in so well. What a good boy you are,” Levi drawls as he watches Eren rock back again. “You are so gorgeous, Eren.” And he really is, face flushed and eyes lidded as he moves himself on Levi’s cock, his own erection standing in full attention with precome dripping down along his shaft. As Levi’s eyes roam over Eren, he doesn’t even try to hide into himself, his entire body wound taut like a bowstring and leaning towards Levi’s every touch.  
  
Taking on that devious tone of his again, Eren says, “It feels really good, daddy.” He sinks even further down Levi’s cock with a small wriggle of his hips until he has all of it inside him. He tries to say something more, but is reduced to a whimpering mess when Levi angles himself just right to hit at his prostate.  
  
“Oh, yeah? Does my good boy like that?” The words taper off into a groan because Eren’s chosen that exact moment to squeeze down on his cock.  
  
“You know I do,” he murmurs with a wicked grin. “I can feel all of you inside of me, fuck, it’s so hot.”  
  
Levi trails a finger along Eren’s cock, the hard length twitching under his touch. “You’re so turned on, already, look at how much you’re leaking down here.” He brushes at the head, slick wetness clinging on to his fingers which he soon brings up to trace at Eren’s lips. When his pink tongue darts out to lick over them thoroughly, Levi makes a choked sound at the back of his throat. There’s Eren, in his lap with his ass full of cock, tasting his own arousal from Levi’s fingers, and not just tasting – devouring would be a better word to use, sucking greedily on them even after the taste of himself has surely faded away.  
  
With the fingers still in his mouth, Eren mumbles, barely audible, “I know, I can’t help it, your cock’s too perfect for me. It fits inside me just right.” He rocks back again, a moan falling from him. As his head falls back, Levi thinks he sees a few drops of moisture at the corners of his eyes. “Fuck, daddy, it’s so good.” With another roll of his hips, his voice turns into trembling panting, nails digging into Levis shoulders as he holds on.  
  
“There, there, darling,” Levi hums, leaning forward to press his lips gently against Eren’s closed eyelids. Feeling uncharacteristically merciful, his hand returns to Eren’s slick cock, fingertips dancing lightly over the head and making the whole length twitch as he strokes down along it. “How pretty you are, getting yourself off all on our own. I don’t have to do any work, your ass is sucking me in so nicely.” His hold on Eren’s cock is feather light at first, but when Eren tries to buck into it further, Levi wraps his fingers around it more firmly. “I’m so glad you’re mine, Eren, my good boy, so glad that you let me see you like this.” He knows that he sounds disgustingly love-struck – which he is, mind you – but luckily Eren’s too busy grinding himself down and calling out Levi’s name in a throaty whine.  
  
“Please,” he cries out, a shiver wrecking his body as Levi aims right for his prostate.  
  
“Please what?” Levi teases. His hips snap up in a momentary lapse of control upon feeling innocent fingers flutter over his stomach.  
  
Eren knows the drill by now and without pausing to think, he forces out in a choked moan, “Kiss me. Please.”  
  
There’s such an absurd amount of longing in his voice that of course Levi complies without a beat, his lips meeting Eren’s in a slow kiss. Eren’s honest-to-God shaking against him, his tongue a little clumsy but what he’s currently lacking in skill he makes up for in enthusiasm. It’s rather sweet, his mouth moving against Levi’s like he can’t get enough, his hands creeping up along Levi’s torso and one of them reaching out to hold him by the chin, as if Eren’s concerned Levi will draw back too soon and leave him with cold, lonely lips.  
  
In order to reassure him, Levi winds his arm around Eren even tighter and holds him close, so close that for a moment Levi’s sure that he loses track of where he ends and Eren begins. What finally makes Eren break away is the delicious moan that follows when Levi gives his cock an affectionate stroke. His ass clenches around Levi’s length and Levi can’t fight the groan that escapes his mouth as well. It’s a small miracle that he’s been able to hold himself together for so long because it’s Eren, Eren’s all around him with his careful touches and soft wisps of hair and beautiful emerald eyes that are fucking _sparkling_ by now and full of affection and those eyes are looking at him so intently Levi’s sure he’s going to lose it any moment now.  
  
Just as well, Eren calls out in a needy tone, “Fuck, Levi, I’m going to come.” He’s flushed all the way up his chest, the muscles in his thighs quivering as he moves himself in increasingly shallow little jerks.  
  
“Me too, sweetheart,” Levi breathes out. He swipes his thumb over the head of Eren’s cock before resuming the firm strokes over his shaft that are quickly driving Eren closer and closer to the edge if his labored breathing is anything to go by. “You’ve been such a good boy, go ahead and come for me any time you want, I’m right here, baby.”  
  
Eren whines at the back of his throat, hiding his face into Levi’s shoulder. He’s clinging on to him so hard that Levi’s sure he’ll have tiny indents left from his nails for days, and he doesn’t mind at all. “Love you so much, daddy,” he mumbles, sounding so far gone with his voice only a shrill whisper.  
  
“I love you too, Eren, so, so much, fuck, you’re so amazing, so perfect for me,” Levi groans as he holds on to Eren’s hair and presses him even impossibly closer. “Always so eager to please, always such a good boy for me.”  
  
With a series of shaky moans, Eren reaches his peak, his whole body shuddering as he comes. The walls enveloping Levi’s cock clamp down on reflex, and that’s all it takes to make him come as well, burying himself deep into Eren’s ass. All he sees and hears and feels is Eren, everywhere at once, sweet, precious Eren, the light of his life and the literal center of his universe, at least for the amount of time it takes for him to ride out his orgasm, hips jerking up forcefully.  
  
Once the high subsides, Levi slouches back and wraps both of his arms around Eren who only shudders, a keening sound rising up from his throat. It takes a bit of coaxing to get him to raise his head from where it’s been buried in Levi’s shoulder, and as Levi pulls him back by his hair to give him a kiss, he faintly registers something sputtering on to his stomach.  
  
“You’re still coming, huh?” he drawls lazily as he strokes over the head of Eren’s cock that hasn’t yet stopped twitching and dribbling out semen.  
  
Now that’s he’s gone over the edge, Eren looks a little embarrassed. “Sorry,” he moans as he ducks his head. “It was just really nice.” Even now his hips are moving in small circles, more come spurting out when he finds the perfect angle where Levi’s half-hard cock is nudging against his prostate.  
  
“Don’t worry, Eren, you deserve it, you’ve been such a good boy, after all,” Levi nearly purrs. His hands move to massage at Eren’s ample thighs that are still shaking lightly in the aftershocks of his orgasm. “Get it all out, darling, show me how much you like it.”  
  
It’s strangely intimate watching Eren in the throes of pleasure while he himself is already too worn out to do anything else than mutter quiet praises and sweet words into his ear. Eren’s idly fucking himself on Levi’s mostly flaccid cock, each small thrust causing the very last few drops of come to ooze out. Once he’s all worn out and satisfied, he slumps against Levi’s chest, arms finding their place around his neck. Eren’s all but buzzing as Levi caresses along the strong muscles of his back, content to simply lay there even though his stomach and thighs are coated with come.  
  
When Levi slips out of him, Eren makes a tiny noise in protests, but it isn’t until Levi tries to slide off the couch and find something to clean them up with that he speaks out.  
  
“No. Cuddles,” he insists and holds on to Levi’s arm to stop him from escaping. Though he looks a little dazed, there’s determination set in his face as he clings on to Levi.  
  
Levi rolls his eyes, wriggling out from under him. “I’m getting tissues, don’t worry. I’ll be back in two seconds.”  
  
“And a blanket,” Eren adds. He tries to go for a commanding glare, but when he’s lying there all curled up and disheveled it sort of loses all its edge. “I’m cold.”  
  
After promising he’ll grab a blanket as well, Levi makes his way to the bathroom and disposes of the used condom in the trash. On his way out, he happens to catch a glimpse of himself in the mirror – his neck and shoulders are littered with small hickeys and other marks, his hair’s sticking up in angles that defy gravity and the expression of dumb elation lingering on his face makes him sick to his stomach. Gross, he’s totally in love. Damn Eren and his gorgeous everything.  
  
Eren’s right where Levi left him, laying on the couch with his arm hanging off the side. Once he hears the footsteps, he lifts his head up with a hopeful look in his eyes. “About time, you were gone for forever,” he complains as Levi tosses the blanket he’d brought to him. “Now cuddles.”  
  
“I was literally gone for maybe thirty seconds at most,” Levi points out. He settles next to Eren under the blanket and feels arms wind around his waist in an instant while he reaches down to wipe off the mess they’d made. “You’re the worst.”  
  
“It felt like forever,” Eren mutters into his hair. “Don’t leave me ever again.”  
  
As his hand comes up to rub at Eren’s back, he feels a tightness in his chest that has nothing to do with the intense sex they just had and everything to do with the words that Eren had clearly intended as nothing serious.  
  
“I won’t,” he promises regardless, and as Eren squirms around a little to get more comfortable in his arms, Levi cannot find a single reason to ever more from where is.  
  
(Of course, Cat will come along later and meow loudly by the armrest until one of them gets up to give him his dinner, because that’s just what cats do, but even then Levi won’t be able to wipe off the idiotic smile off his face. )

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eeehhhh don't look at me im literal trash ahahahahaaaaa. sorry for the huge delay in putting this up man i am the worst author ever ahhh. and also sorry for the porn, and actually sorry for everything lol
> 
> anyway, that's it for this fic! thank you ever so much to anyone who read this, i'd love to hear what you think, so come and hit me up on tumblr at http://crying-abt-fictional-people.tumblr.com/


End file.
